Success, Failure and Courage

Posted on 27. Jul, 2009 by in Inspiration, Leadership

My friend and co-worker Michael Warden wrote a post last week interacting with this quote from Winston Churchill. What a great quote that’s been stirring me up lately.

“Success is never final. Failure is never fatal. It is courage that counts.” — Winston Churchill

It’s prompted me to aks a lot of questions of myslef:

  • What old successes have I been living off of?
  • When was the last time I failed? Am I not taking big enough risks?
  • What have I done lately that required courage on my part?

What do you thinik?

Meet Kenny

Kenny Conley has written 1607 posts on CMO.

Kenny Conley is the primary author of Childrens Ministry Online and the NextGen Pastor at Gateway Church in Austin, TX. In addition to creating the Illuminate Conference, a high quality kidmin conference designed specifically for volunteers, Kenny is a published author and speaker. For more biographical info, click here.

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  • http://www.sojournerblog.blogspot.com Michael Warden

    Love this, Kenny. Thanks for the props.

    Your questions really hit deep. Especially the second one: When was the last time I failed? Am I not taking big enough risks? I think true innovators and thought leaders understand that taking a big risk and spectacularly failing is not only okay, but desirable. They know that big risks, and even grand failures, stir the pot of possibility, and open doors to previously unseen ways of doing and being.

    Unfortunately, I don’t often see it that way. I’ve still got too much ego wrapped up in my work at times. I don’t want to look bad, or like I don’t have it all together. Your questions really prompt me to consider where I’m holding back or playing it safe in my love and commitment to Christ and his people.

    Thanks for that. I’m really going to chew on this one.
    .-= Michael Warden´s last blog ..Type A vs. Type B Creatives =-.

  • http://westcoastcm.wordpress.com Anthony Prince

    I think it’s a fantastic idea (though an extremely hard one to actually do) to share our failures… sometimes even harder to admit them to ourselves.

    Thanks for posting this, Kenny.
    Always good to evaluate where we’re at.
    .-= Anthony Prince´s last blog ..Top 10 Children’s Ministry Resources: The Other 10 =-.

  • http://www.ginamcclain.com Gina

    Agreed. The most dangerous thing is resting too long on past success. Failure keeps you humble anyway.
    .-= Gina´s last blog ..Book Winner – Rita Entwistle =-.

  • http://childrensministryonline.com Kenny

    Amen!