Introduction

Shortly after returning home from World War II, a fellow named Earl decided to buy a television set. He went to the store and asked for a demonstration. He was impressed, but decided to postpone the purchase—it was a little too expensive. A couple of years later Earl reconsidered buying a TV, but again decided against it—there weren't enough stations in his city offering sufficient variety.

Later, when his city was the home of several new stations, he considered getting a TV but didn't—he had heard that in a couple of years color television would be available. So he waited. Then he heard vacuum tubes would be replaced with solid-state. So he waited a little longer. You've probably detected a pattern by now. Finally, Earl's wife said, "I've waited long enough! Go to the appliance store today and don't come home without a television."

At last Earl was going to buy a TV. Just as the salesman was saying, "Cash or Credit?" Earl began telling his story. He said, "You know, I've never owned a TV before. I can't get wait to get my TV set home because there is a show I've always wanted to watch: Gunsmoke." The salesman said, "Uh, Earl, I've got bad news for you. Gunsmoke was canceled in 1970." Earl stared at the man in disbelief. "They canceled Gunsmoke?! Then forget it. I'm not buying this TV."

Some people spend their lives just like Earl. They know what they want out of life, or at least they've got a pretty good idea, but they just can't bring themselves to do anything about it. I frequently see people who are unhappy, and their condition seems terminal—they live unhappy and they die unhappy—yet they refuse to do anything about it. My question for them is, "What's holding you back? Why are you unwilling to change the things in your life that aren't working?"

Of course, you know what the answer is: it's fear. Fear of failure. What if things don't work out? What if I buy the TV and it breaks down, or I can't make the payments, or a better one comes along? It is fear of failure that holds us back and prevents us from experiencing the kind of fulfillment in life that God wants us to have.

God created us to live life in one direction: forward. We were not made with a neutral or reverse. Yet, in spite of the fact that God wants the best for us, many people feel there's something holding them back, preventing them from experiencing fulfillment in life.

David knew about being held back by fear. He was king of Judah, but we must remember that he was not born a king. He was born a shepherd boy. He wasn't groomed to lead a nation of people; he was groomed to watch sheep. He was still very young when he found himself facing challenges and problems greater than anyone in his family had ever faced. In the Psalms we discover that there were times when David was absolutely paralyzed by fear. However, David learned to overcome his fear—and to this day he is known as Israel's greatest leader.

Let me ask you a question. If you could try anything and guarantee the results, what would it be? If failure wasn't a possibility, what would you attempt to do? Would you choose a new career … start your own business … get married … have children … go back to college … buy a house … take dancing lessons … become a missionary…get serious about your relationship with God? If you could guarantee results on anything at all, what would it be?

Now let me ask you another question: What's holding you back? Is it the fear of failure? More than anything else, it's the fear of failure that prevents people from realizing the fullness of their potential.

If you find yourself afraid to move forward in life because of the fear of failure, I've got good news for you. It doesn't have to be that way. King David had the very same problem, and he overcame his fears. In Psalm 66, he shows us how we can eliminate this fear from our lives.

The way to overcome the fear of failure is to fail.

The first thing that helps us overcome the fear of failure is failure. That's right. The way to overcome the fear of failure is to fail. You see, we grow up thinking that failure is a terrible thing. We think it is something to be ashamed of. We believe we must succeed at everything we do, and avoid failure at all costs—like failure is some monster that ruins our lives forever.

That's not the way it is. I've had some failures in my life. I won't bore you with the details, but I'll tell you that they run the gamut from friendships that went sour to jobs that didn't work out to investments that went belly-up to speaking engagements where I fell flat on my face. These failures taught me a valuable lesson: failure isn't fatal, and it isn't final.

"Though a righteous man falls seven times, he gets back up" (Proverbs 24:16).

It's not a question of whether we will fail, it's a question of how we respond to failure. Those who fail and give up are a dime a dozen. Those who fail and get up are one in a million.

Without failure we can't expect to learn. The only way a high jumper can discover his limit is to jump until he misses. That's why Bill Gates, CEO of Microsoft, says, "Success is a terrible teacher." When we are succeeding we tend to focus on things that aren't necessarily essential, but failure has a way of getting our attention! The way to overcome fear of failure is to remove the sting of failure. So what if you try something and it doesn't work? You learn a lesson and move on. Failure can't hurt you, it can only help you.

David knew that the setbacks he faced were only temporary. In verses 9-12 he talks about all the disappointments he has faced, yet he realized that failure isn't fatal, and it isn't final, because "He has preserved our lives and kept our feet from slipping" (Psalm 66:9).

David's attitude was, "I am not afraid of failure because I belong to God."

Commitment helps us see solutions to difficulties we face.

A second thing that will help us overcome the fear of failure is commitment. When a married couple takes seriously the vow to stay together "until death do us part" they soon make an amazing discovery: every problem has a solution. If divorce is not an option, any problem can be worked out. It is our lack of commitment—in marriage or other areas of life—that prevents us from seeing the solutions to the problems we face.

David wasn't afraid to fail as a king because he had made a commitment to God. His commitment involved going to the temple and offering sacrifices. "I will come to your temple with burnt offerings and fulfill my vows to you" (v. 13). It also involved making an effort to live a good life. "If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened" (v. 18).

If a person wants to live the Christian life, he or she needs to come to church and make an effort to live right. But we cannot make the mistake of thinking that is all there is to it. There's more to a relationship with God than just going to church and obeying the rules, and David knew that. In verse 16 he shows us the basis of his spiritual life, "Come and listen, all you who fear God; let me tell you what he has done for me" (v. 16).

Many people think that a relationship with God is a one-way relationship. They think being a Christian means that you do things for God: you go to church, you give your money, you obey the Ten Commandments, and so on. But that's not it at all. Our relationship with God isn't about what we do for him; it's about what he does for us.

We don't get into a right relationship with God by cleaning ourselves up and trying to do better so that he will accept us. We get right with God by letting him clean us up and make us right—and everything we do after that is in response to his love for us. Yes, we should go to church. Yes, we should give. Yes, we should live holy. But let's keep it in perspective: serving God is not our obligation, it is our privilege.

It is easier to commit to something when we see it as a privilege rather than an obligation. For example, work is not an obligation, it is a privilege; your marriage vows are not an obligation to fulfill, they are a privilege; serving God is not an obligation, it is a privilege. When you look at life from God's perspective it is easier to make the commitment.

When you look at life from God's perspective it is easier to keep the commitment, too. Because when we recognize life as a gift from God, we should realize we belong to God. David wasn't afraid of failure because he knew he belonged to God, and that God would take care of him. Even if David failed, he knew he could trust God. Paul said, "If we are faithless, He will remain faithful, for He cannot disown Himself" (2 Timothy 2:13).

Our faith helps us keep matters in perspective.

The third element that helps us overcome the fear of failure is faith. It's a fact of life that we won't always get the results we want. We can, however, take comfort in knowing that, regardless of what happens, God is with us. Having faith in God helps us keep our priorities in line. Faith helps us to remember what the important things in life are, and that they cannot be taken away. What could we possibly lose? Our house? Our car? Our money? Our health? Our life? Maybe so, but no matter what happens we will never lose our relationship with God. Even when this life is over we begin a new life in His presence forever. That's why Jesus said, "Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul" (Matthew 10:28).

Our faith helps us keep matters in perspective. It helps us differentiate between what is real and what isn't. It enables us to recognize the things that will last forever. Failure is no longer a threat, because when it comes to what is really important, we can't fail. This is what David is saying in the last part of Psalm 66, "God has surely listened and heard my voice in prayer. Praise be to God who has not rejected my prayer or withheld His love from me!" (v. 19-20).

These verses show us three things that God will not do. God will not ignore you. God will not reject you. God will not withhold His love from you.

If the president of your bank were to make this kind of commitment to you ("I will not ignore you, reject you, withhold from you"), would you fear failure? Of course not. You would undoubtedly feel like you could conquer the world!

God has made this commitment to us, and he will see us through every detail of our lives—even the storms and the rough times—and he will bring us to, as David says in verse 12, "a place of abundance."

Conclusion

Did David win every battle he ever fought? Of course not. Did he always get perfect results? No. But David didn't let the fear of failure hold him back. He knew that, regardless of the outcome, God was with him. He knew he could trust God to take care of him.

David's attitude was, "I'm not afraid of failure because I belong to God." This is the attitude that we need to have. Failure can't hurt us, and God is with us every step of the way, so what have we to be afraid of? The fear of failure can be overcome by putting yourself where you belong—in God's hands. Don't let anything hold you back. You belong to God. No matter what happens, he'll take care of you.

For Your Reflection

Personal growth: How has this sermon fed your own soul? ___________________________________________

Skill growth: What did this sermon teach you about how to preach? ____________________________________________________________________________

Exegesis and exposition: Highlight the paragraphs in this sermon that helped you better understand Scripture. How does the sermon model ways you could provide helpful biblical exposition for your hearers? ____________________________________________________________________________

Theological Ideas: What biblical principles in this sermon would you like to develop in a sermon? How would you adapt these ideas to reflect your own understanding of Scripture, the Christian life, and the unique message that God is putting on your heart? ____________________________________________________________________________

Outline: How would you improve on this outline by changing the wording, or by adding or subtracting points? _____________________________________________________________________

Application: What is the main application of this sermon? What is the main application of the message you sense God wants you to bring to your hearers? ____________________________________________________________________________

Illustrations: Which illustrations in this sermon would relate well with your hearers? Which cannot be used with your hearers, but they suggest illustrations that could work with your hearers? ____________________________________________________________________________

Credit: Do you plan to use the content of this sermon to a degree that obligates you to give credit? If so, when and how will you do it?

Steve May has been a pastor to pastors for more than 20 years, helping preachers and teachers to become more effective communicators of the gospel.