Handling Criticism the Right Way (4)

“If God is for us, who can be against us?” Ro 8:31 NKJV

The moment you lift your head above the crowd you’ll attract attention, and not always the kind you want. Learn from the duck. He stays calm on the surface, keeps paddling underneath, and lets the water run off his back. Time is on your side. When Nathaniel asked, concerning Jesus, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip answered, “Come and see” (Jn 1:46 NKJV). Nathaniel did, and he ended up becoming a disciple. Often, as events unfold, the cause of the criticism will become clear and you’ll be vindicated. But you must keep going. George Bernard Shaw, the Irish playwright, certainly had his critics—but he knew how to handle them. After one opening a critic stood up in the audience and shouted, “It’s rotten!” To which Shaw stood up and replied, “I agree, but what are we against so many?” Nobody had more critics than Paul, yet he wrote: “If God be for us, who can be against us?” Without courage we simply accumulate a collection of good ideas—and regrets. Most of our missed opportunities wouldn’t have been missed if we had been willing to push through the criticism and embrace what could have been. All of us experience fear. But here’s the difference: the winner’s need for progress overwhelms their reluctance to take a risk. They can live more easily with the memory of having tried and failed, than not having tried at all. They know that failure is an inevitable part of success, and failure always brings criticism. And while others fear stepping out into a new opportunity, the winner fears missing out on it.

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