Once, when I was in Jr. High, I was bucked off a horse. I was riding with a group at a summer camp, and two horses on either side of me closed in on my horse, and he rose up on his back legs and off I went. I got back up on the horse and rode back to camp. When we were at the stables one of the other riders asked me why I got back up on the horse? I replied, “I didn’t want to walk back to camp.” I had signed up for a horse ride, and I didn’t want to spend half of it walking because I was afraid to get back on. Sometimes you need to pick yourself up and keep going.
Proverbs 24:16
“Though a righteous person falls seven times, he will get up, but the wicked will stumble into ruin.”
Wise Observation
There is a lot of wisdom in this proverb. It looks at failure, motivation, and ego. The writer was a wise observer of those who get up when they fail and very astute with those who don’t. You can tell a lot about a person when they experience disappointment or failure. If their heart is right, they will get up a lot easier when things don’t work out.
The Right Motivation
When you do things with the right motives, it is easy to get back up when you fall. You are motivated to finish because you believe in what you are doing. The drive to complete what you set out to do is higher than the thought of quitting. When your motivation is doing the right thing, you can push yourself to overcome any obstacle. Pick yourself up.
The Wrong Motivation
What keeps you from getting back up is your ego. If you are worried about looking foolish or failing again, you will always stay down. Many dreams and aspirations have gone down the tube because of a failure to deal with disappointment. When our motivation is to look good or impress people, it will be challenging to push ourselves when we encounter a setback.
Pick Yourself Up
The righteous person always gets up when he falls. That is because God has put joy and hope in their heart. Pure motives produce strong initiative. Next time you fall check your heart. Is it motivated for the right reasons? If it isn’t then, it will never be successful, but when it is, you will be able to keep going. Pick yourself up and keep going.