Embracing New Beginnings: Moving Beyond Failure

Devotional

Day 1: Moving Forward Means Letting Go of the Past

It is impossible to move forward into God’s calling for your life if you are always looking back at your regrets, failures, and what you cannot change. Like driving a car, your vision must be set on where God is leading you, not on the rearview mirror of your past. Many people remain stuck in the pain or trauma of years gone by, never truly moving on, and as a result, they miss out on the new things God wants to do. God calls you to confront your past honestly, but not to live there—He wants you to step into the future He has prepared for you, trusting that His grace is enough to cover what’s behind and empower what’s ahead. [01:02]

Philippians 3:13-14 (ESV)
"Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."

Reflection: What is one specific regret or failure from your past that you keep revisiting? What would it look like to intentionally release it to God today and focus on where He is leading you next?

Day 2: Failure Does Not Disqualify You from God’s Purpose

Peter’s story shows that even after the deepest failure—denying Jesus three times—God’s call and love remain. After the resurrection, Jesus intentionally seeks Peter out, not to condemn him, but to restore him and reaffirm his purpose. Jesus meets Peter in his place of defeat, invites him to breakfast, and three times asks, “Do you love me?”—giving Peter the chance to declare his love and be recommissioned. Your failures do not define you; God’s mercy and calling do. No matter how badly you think you’ve blown it, Jesus stands on the shore of your life, ready to restore, forgive, and send you forward again. [10:09]

John 21:15-19 (ESV)
"When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, 'Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?' He said to him, 'Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.' He said to him, 'Feed my lambs.' He said to him a second time, 'Simon, son of John, do you love me?' He said to him, 'Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.' He said to him, 'Tend my sheep.' He said to him the third time, 'Simon, son of John, do you love me?' Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time, 'Do you love me?' and he said to him, 'Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.' Jesus said to him, 'Feed my sheep. Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were young, you used to dress yourself and walk wherever you wanted, but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will dress you and carry you where you do not want to go.' (This he said to show by what kind of death he was to glorify God.) And after saying this he said to him, 'Follow me.'"

Reflection: Where in your life have you believed that your failure has disqualified you from God’s purpose? How might Jesus be inviting you to receive His restoration and step back into your calling today?

Day 3: Righteousness Is Not About Never Falling, But Always Rising Again

The Bible teaches that even the righteous fall, but what sets them apart is that they get back up. Failure is not the end; it is the platform for God’s grace and resurrection power to be displayed. Peter thought his denial meant he was finished, but God’s Word says a righteous person falls seven times and rises again. Your story is not over when you fall—God specializes in raising people up from the ashes, breathing new life into what seemed dead, and turning setbacks into setups for His glory. [23:06]

Proverbs 24:16 (ESV)
"For the righteous falls seven times and rises again, but the wicked stumble in times of calamity."

Reflection: Think of a recent failure or disappointment. What is one practical way you can “get back up” and trust God to write a new chapter from this place?

Day 4: God’s Restoration Makes You Known for His Healing, Not Your Lack

The man born blind was known for his lack, but after encountering Jesus, he was remembered for his healing. Jesus used spit—carrying His own DNA—to make mud and restore the man’s sight, showing that when God puts His DNA on your life, you are not the same. Throughout Scripture, God takes people who were known for their failures or deficits and transforms them so that their testimony becomes about His power and grace. You may have been known for brokenness, addiction, or shame, but God wants to make you remembered for how He healed, restored, and set you free. [30:00]

John 9:1-7 (ESV)
"As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth. And his disciples asked him, 'Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?' Jesus answered, 'It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him. We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming, when no one can work. As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.' Having said these things, he spit on the ground and made mud with the saliva. Then he anointed the man's eyes with the mud and said to him, 'Go, wash in the pool of Siloam' (which means Sent). So he went and washed and came back seeing."

Reflection: What is one area of your life where you have felt defined by your lack or failure? How can you invite Jesus to put His “DNA” on that area and believe for a new testimony?

Day 5: God Wants You to Stretch Out What’s Withered, Not Just What’s Strong

Many people have learned to live with their deficits, hiding their withered hand and only showing God and others their strengths. But Jesus calls you to step forward and stretch out what is weak, broken, or withered—He wants to restore what you’ve learned to live without. Restoration is not about reaching back to the past, but about offering God what you have left, even if it’s just a little faith or a broken place. When you bring your weakness to Jesus, He creates something new and whole, making you a testimony of His restoring power. [52:37]

Mark 3:1-5 (ESV)
"Again he entered the synagogue, and a man was there with a withered hand. And they watched Jesus, to see whether he would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him. And he said to the man with the withered hand, 'Come here.' And he said to them, 'Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to kill?' But they were silent. And he looked around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, and said to the man, 'Stretch out your hand.' He stretched it out, and his hand was restored."

Reflection: What is one “withered” area of your life—something you’ve hidden or learned to live with—that you sense God asking you to bring into the light and stretch out to Him today?

Sermon Summary

So often, we find ourselves stuck in the past, haunted by regrets, failures, and moments we wish we could change. But just like when driving a car, it’s impossible to move forward if we’re always looking back. God calls us to live with our eyes on what’s ahead, not what’s behind. Many of us, like Peter, have moments where we feel our mistakes have disqualified us from God’s promises. Peter, after denying Jesus three times, was convinced he had ruined everything. He went back to what was familiar—fishing—believing his failure had canceled his calling.

Yet, Jesus meets Peter not at the end of the day, but at sunrise, symbolizing a new beginning. Jesus doesn’t shame Peter or rehearse his failures. Instead, He restores him, asking three times, “Do you love me?”—one for each denial. This is not just forgiveness; it’s reinstatement. Jesus entrusts Peter with purpose again, showing that our failures are not the end, but often the very place where God’s grace and calling are most powerfully revealed.

Failure is a universal experience. It doesn’t discriminate, and it often becomes the thing that defines us—if we let it. But God is not intimidated by our flaws or our weaknesses. He has already factored them into His plans for us. The Bible is full of people whose failures are on display, not to shame them, but to show how God’s mercy and restoration work. Moses, David, Samson, and Peter were all known for their shortcomings, but remembered for how God redeemed their stories.

Restoration doesn’t come by reaching back into the past, but by stretching out what we have left to God. Like the man with the withered hand, we are called to bring our brokenness, not just our strengths, to Jesus. He doesn’t want the polished version of us; He wants the real, raw, and honest parts we’ve learned to hide or accept as permanent. When we give Him what we have left, He creates something new—He restores, not just heals.

God’s mercies are new every morning. No matter how many times we fall, what matters is that we get back up. Our future is always forward, never behind us. The miracle comes after the burial, after the failure, when we dare to hope again and trust that God isn’t done with us yet.

Key Takeaways

1. Moving Forward Requires Letting Go of the Past It’s impossible to move forward while constantly looking back at regrets and failures. God calls us to fix our eyes on what’s ahead, trusting that He has a purpose beyond our past mistakes. The decision to let go is not a one-time event but a daily act of faith, choosing to believe that our future is not behind us but in front of us. [01:02]
2. Failure Is Not the End, but a Defining Moment Failure visits everyone, and it often feels like it disqualifies us from God’s promises. Yet, it is in the rubble of our mistakes that God does His deepest work, shaping our character and redirecting our lives. The way we respond to failure—whether we get back up or retreat to what’s familiar—determines the trajectory of our future. [13:38]
3. Restoration Comes When We Offer God What’s Left God doesn’t ask for our perfection; He asks for our honesty. Like the man with the withered hand, we are called to stretch out our brokenness, not just our strengths. When we give God what little faith, hope, or strength we have left, He restores and creates something new, often beyond what we could imagine. [52:37]
4. God’s Mercy Is New Every Morning The timing of Jesus’ encounter with Peter at sunrise is a powerful reminder that every day is a new opportunity for mercy and restoration. God’s faithfulness is not based on our performance but on His steadfast love. Even when we feel we’ve reached the end, God brings a new beginning, inviting us to hope again. [34:12]
5. Our Identity Is Not in What We Were Known For, but in How God Redeems Us Throughout Scripture, people are remembered not for their failures, but for how God transformed their stories. Moses, David, Samson, and Peter all had moments of deep failure, but God’s grace redefined their legacy. What matters most is not what we’ve done, but what God does with our surrendered lives. [27:29]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[01:02] - The Danger of Looking Back
[02:10] - Confronting Real Life Issues
[03:12] - Hiding from God in Our Hearts
[04:36] - Peter’s Denial Foretold
[05:15] - Peter’s Denial in Action
[07:43] - Peter Returns to Fishing
[08:33] - Jesus Appears at Sunrise
[10:09] - Jesus Restores Peter
[11:32] - What Do You Do with Failure?
[13:38] - How Failure Defines Us
[16:09] - Peter’s Personality and God’s Use of Imperfect People
[19:43] - The Temptation to Return to the Familiar
[23:06] - The Righteous Rise Again
[27:29] - When God Puts His DNA on You
[31:59] - Overestimating Our Strengths
[34:12] - The Significance of the Sunrise
[37:58] - The Miracle After the Burial
[41:03] - The Awkward Breakfast: Facing Our Failure
[47:48] - The Man with the Withered Hand
[52:37] - Stretching Out What You Have Left

Bible Study Guide

Observation Questions

In John 21, what did Peter do after he denied Jesus, and how did Jesus respond to him when they met at the shore? ([07:43])
According to Proverbs 24:16, what is the difference between the righteous and the wicked when it comes to failure? ([23:06])
In Mark 3, what did Jesus ask the man with the withered hand to do, and what was the result? ([47:48])
What time of day did Jesus appear to Peter and the disciples, and why is that detail important in the story? ([34:12])

Interpretation Questions

Why do you think Peter went back to fishing after his failure, instead of waiting for Jesus or trying something new? What does this say about how people often respond to regret or shame? ([19:43])
The sermon says that Jesus didn’t shame Peter or rehearse his failures, but instead restored him. What does this teach us about how God deals with our mistakes? ([10:09])
The man with the withered hand had learned to live with his weakness. Why do you think Jesus asked him to stretch out his hand, and not just heal him instantly? ([47:48])
The sunrise in John 21 is described as a symbol of new beginnings. How does this connect to the idea that “God’s mercies are new every morning”? ([34:12])

Application Questions

The sermon says, “It’s impossible to move forward while you’re always looking back.” Is there a specific regret or failure from your past that you keep revisiting? What would it look like to let go of it this week? ([01:02])
Peter believed his failure had canceled his calling, so he went back to what was familiar. Have you ever gone back to old habits or comfort zones after a disappointment? What would it take to step forward in faith instead? ([19:43])
Jesus asked Peter three times, “Do you love me?”—one for each denial. Is there an area in your life where you feel disqualified or unworthy? How might God be inviting you to receive restoration instead of shame? ([10:09])
The man with the withered hand had to stretch out what was broken, not what was strong. What is one area of weakness or brokenness you’ve been hiding from God or others? What would it look like to “stretch it out” to Jesus this week? ([47:48])
The sermon says, “God’s not intimidated by your flaws. He’s already factored them into His plans for you.” How does this truth challenge the way you see your own failures? ([23:06])
The sunrise in Peter’s story is a reminder that every day is a new opportunity for mercy. What is one practical way you can remind yourself of God’s new mercies each morning? ([34:12])
The Bible is full of people who were known for their failures but remembered for how God redeemed them. Is there a part of your story you wish could be rewritten? How might God want to use even your failures for something good? ([27:29])

Sermon Clips

It's impossible to move forward while you're always looking back. I know that's simple in nature, but you still ain't got it. It's impossible to move forward while you're always looking back. [00:00:58]

Regret, it always eats up your, your present time. Looking back at things that you cannot change, but you wished you could change. Do I have any witnesses in this house tonight that know what I'm talking about? [00:02:06]

Your Bible, listen to me, is full of people who we hold in such high regard. But the truth is, it highlights their failures just as much as it does their victories. [00:03:30]

Isn't it amazing when you try to fix the situation yourself, you get nowhere and you get nothing. [00:08:10]

I know I screwed up, but you've got to know that I love you. I love you. I just want to please you. I didn't mean to fail you. I still want to be used by you. You know I love you. [00:10:45]

Failure does not discriminate, and it doesn't care who you are. Everybody's going to get visited by failure. [00:11:56]

Failure, listen to me and write this down because this will change your life. Failure is usually the thing that will define you. I'm going to say it again. Failure is the thing that usually will define you. [00:13:22]

Victories do not define you. Out of all the times I've got a blessing or a plaque or a recognition. Those were not the seasons that molded me and developed my character. Somebody say amen. It was when we were at the threshold of something happening, but it was all crumbling all around us. It was in that moment how we responded that changed the trajectory, listen to me, of our lives. [00:14:12]

Life is about 10 % of what you initiate and 90 % of what others do to you and how you respond defines you. Not many people live according to a plan. We live in reaction to what's been done to us. [00:14:38]

The thing I love about the Bible is it highlights failures of people that God, listen to me, uses continually on a regular basis. This is for somebody tonight. Listen to me. [00:17:54]

Some of you are so comfortable with being bound. It's almost eerie. Some of you are so comfortable in your grave. Some of you all have convinced your grave clothes feel like a throw. [00:20:00]

It's not about failing. It's whether are you going to get back up or not. It's not about, God's not intimidated by your flaws. God's not intimidated by your weaknesses. When God created you, he factored in your stupidity. He factored in your shortcomings. For all have fallen short of the glory of God. Somebody say amen. [00:23:04]

If you don't know by now, your God is the master at getting back up when everybody else thought it was too late. Come on, somebody shout back at me. Your God is the author of getting back up again. [00:23:44]

And I've been sitting here. Listen, it may not be for everybody, but it's for somebody in the crowd today to tell you God says your future is never behind you, but your future is always forward. [00:24:42]

When God puts his DNA on you, somebody say amen in this place. When God puts DNA on you, you are not the same creation. [00:29:00]

He was known for being blind, but we remember him for getting healed. Y 'all ain't saying nothing. And God said, you may have been known for something, but I'm about to make you something in this season. You'll be remembered, not what you're known for, but you'll be remembered for how I healed you, how I saved you, how I gave you a purpose, how I, when you had lack, I made you had more than enough. [00:29:22]

He overestimated how committed he was because when his faith got tested, he didn't have near what he thought he had in a difficult environment. Hello. Your faith, listen to me, isn't tested when you come in here and you get encouraged by the word and you hear amazing worship and this is all built. It's not whether you can praise God here. It's can you praise God when somebody insults you? Can you praise God when they belittle you in front of everybody? Can you still praise God when they don't include you? Can you still praise God when they exclude you? Can you still praise God in a wilderness? Can you still praise God when you're not sure of what the next step is? Can you praise God when you don't have all the answers? That's when your faith is tested. [00:33:01]

Even though you may fall a thousand times, but I'm going to tell you, the sun still comes up every day. And when the sun comes up, his mercies are new every morning, his mercies are made new. [00:35:32]

Mercy means he didn't treat you according to what you really deserved. That's mercy. Mercy is, I'm not going to treat you according to your sins. He's saying, if you can make the right decision in the middle of your failure, in the middle of your weakness, come on somebody, in the middle of taking an L, I'll show up. [00:36:54]

You have reveled in your failures and your weakness and how you let him down In this whole time God has thrown this next grapevine to you And you're still swinging from last season You cannot advance until you step out and reach What you never thought was possible. [00:38:01]

If God is going to restore innocence, if God is going to restore holiness, if God is going to restore your peace of mind, if God is going to restore clarity and vision for your life, if God is going to restore salvation to you tonight, you cannot reach back. The directive from the master is, stretch out your hand. In other words, he's saying, and some of you are saying, God, I ain't got much faith left. I've tried this. My parents still got divorced. God, I've tried this. I've tried this. God, I've tried going to counseling. God, I've tried after I got molested. I tried this. He's saying, stretch out what you got left. Give me what you got left. Give me what faith you got. Give me what you got left in our story. [00:51:55]

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