When was the last time you were derailed from reaching a goal? Did the setback discourage you or lead to giving up? It happens. Life throws us curve balls, or we encounter difficulties that seem to prevent us from moving forward.
When time and energy are spent to make a change or make something happen, setbacks can be disappointing, but do not have to leave you stuck. Turning setbacks to comebacks takes intentionality. Here is how to do it:
- Make sure that what you are trying to do is important to you. Important goals are registered in the brain differently than goals that are less important. Important goals activate the brain towards that goal. When a goal is important to you, your willingness to persevere and face challenges is much higher.
- Daily, remind yourself how this change is making your life better. When you focus on the present and how this change is affecting you, it helps sustain the goal.
- Don’t allow fear to take hold. People who do great things, fight fear, and move through it. They embrace failure and learn from it.
- Check your thoughts. Are they negative? Full of doubt? Change that. When you make a change, you have the power of the Holy Spirit in you to help you. Think of the judge Deborah in the Old Testament. She was called to do a job only men had done. She faced it with courage, but could have thought of a hundred reasons why she was not a good choice. Instead, she embraced the challenge and didn’t allow fear or negativity to overcome her.
- When you have a setback, acknowledge the disappointment or feelings. Suffering in silence is not a Christian thing to do. Feel it, process it and then move forward.
- Move through discomfort. Change usually causes discomfort as we are forging a new path. Learn to move through it, not avoid or medicate it.
- Focus on the small things you can do in response to a setback. Dust yourself off and attack one small thing for change. Take new action based on what you learned.
- When you are called to do something, failure is not an option. Keep persevering towards the goal. Don’t give up. God is strong when you are weak. Lean into Him during times of difficulty.
- Remember your weapons of warfare. They are not flesh and blood but spiritual. These weapons fight against hopelessness, being outnumbered or ordinary in your calling. Use your spiritual weapons to stay strong in your faith and do not doubt.
- Endure the race. God is for you and working all things for your good. Stay the course and turn that setback to a comeback.
