“But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” (Isaiah 40:31). Our Heavenly Father sent us to Earth knowing that we would fall but also hoping that we would learn how to fly. So how can we learn how to mount up with wings as eagles and fly? If we are going to learn how to fly, then we need a FLIGHT Plan. F - Facing Failure; L - Learn a Lesson; I - Identify Improvement; G - set a Goal; HT - have Hopeful Thoughts. Too many of us have a hard time facing our failures. We have all been called to strive to be perfect, and we don't like having to confront any evidence that we have not yet achieved perfection. But ignoring or distorting reality will not pull us out of a nosedive. It is only when we can face our failures without shifting blame or obfuscating details that we will be able to recognize that we are in fact falling and we need to do something about it. The first thing we need to do, of course, is learn from our mistakes. Failure is inevitable but learning the important lessons that only failures can teach us is something that we must actively take on ourselves. If we pay attention to the circumstances that led to our failure, we can identify the areas that we need to improve. We can then set a goal with specific steps that lead to that improvement. And finally, having the courage to pull out the black box and analyze the wreckage and figure out the lessons that need to be learned and identify what aspect of our lives needs to be improved and then setting a goal is hard and uncomfortable and unpleasant. But it's necessary. And it's possible. That's what we have to remember. Moving from falling to flying is a hopeful process. We can only truly acknowledge our past failures if we also take the time to acknowledge our past successes. If learning from our mistakes and setting goals for improvement are like the flapping of wings - full of laborious effort - then remembering also to think hopeful thoughts that forgiveness and redemption and progress are possible are like the warm thermals that can buoy us upwards and sustain us when we have grown weary of beating our wings and need a little support and encouragement. I hope we can all start to chart out our FLIGHT plans so that at can mount up on the wings of eagles and soar ever upwards on our journey from failure to eventual perfection.
