I recently came across this poem and appreciated it. It can apply to various situations, and the field of pastoral ministry is certainly one of them. Many faithful brothers never win the world or the church’s applause or even appreciation. Sometimes a faithful work fails. And every faithful work has it share of failures- and too often the failures loom larger in our minds than the successes. Here, then, is a fitting poem reminding us to pursue faithfulness, walking by faith and not by sight, “knowing that your labor in the Lord is not in vain”\u009d (1 Cor 15:58).<\/p>\n
To the Men Who Lose<\/p>\n
Here’s to the men who lose!
\nWhat though their work be e’er so nobly planned,
\nAnd watched with zealous care,
\nNo glorious halo crowns their efforts grand,
\nContempt is failure’s share.<\/p>\n
Here’s to the men who lose!
\nIf triumph’s easy smile our struggles greet,
\nCourage is easy then;
\nThe king is he who, after fierce defeat,
\nCan up and fight again.<\/p>\n
Here’s to the men who lose!
\nThe ready plaudits of a fawning world
\nRing sweet in victor’s ears;
\nThe vanquished’s banners never are unfurled-
\nFor them there sound no cheers.<\/p>\n
Here’s to the men who lose!
\nThe touchstone of true worth is not success;
\nThere is a higher test-
\nThough fate may darkly frown, onward to press,
\nAnd bravely do one’s best.<\/p>\n
Here’s to the men who lose!
\nIt is the vanquished’s praises that I sing,
\nAnd this is the toast I choose:
\n“A hard-fought failure is a noble thing;
\nHere’s to the men who lose!”\u009d<\/p>\n
–Anonymous<\/p>\n
Scott T. Brown, editor.\u00a0 It Can Be Done: Poems for Hardship, Sacrifice and Dominion<\/em> (Wake Forest, NC: Merchant Adventurers, 2009), p. 85.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I recently came across this poem and appreciated it. It can apply to various situations, and the field of pastoral ministry is certainly one of them. Many faithful brothers never win the world or the church’s applause or even appreciation. Sometimes a faithful work fails. And every faithful work has it share of failures- and …<\/p>\n