Everyone who ever achieved anything significant had to, at times, work against the odds. The problem for most of us isn’t the odds; it’s that we underestimate ourselves. As R.H. Headlee said, ‘Most people think too small, aim too low, and quit too soon.’ The odds in favour of David defeating Goliath weren’t good, but he factored faith in God into the equation, which made all the difference. Listen to his words: ‘I’ll strike you down and cut off your head’ (v. 46 NIV). Clearly, David was aiming high. And when it comes to the thing God’s calling you to do, aim high. The odds don’t matter that much when God’s involved. It doesn’t matter if you fall along the way. Toddlers fall when they’re learning to walk, but one day, they get there! Dr Maxwell Maltz says, ‘You’re a champion in the art of living if you reach only 65 per cent of your goals.’ If the odds say you’ll make a lot of mistakes on your way to success, so be it. As long as you’re eventually successful, isn’t that what matters? Remember, ‘If at first you don’t succeed – you know you’re running about average!’ As long as you keep trusting God and trying, He’ll help you. James wrote, ‘Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown’ (James 1:12 NIV). And Paul wrote, ‘Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up’ (Galatians 6:9 NIV). When you believe God wants you to succeed, and you persevere, you move from failure to success.
