You Are Free by Rebekah Lyons

Week 9: Chapter 8 — Free to Fail

Read Chapter 8 of You Are Free. Primary passages: 2 Corinthians 12:9–10; Romans 5:3–5.

In a world of perfectly curated highlight reels, Rebekah's invitation to be free to fail sounds almost irresponsible — until she shows you how the fear of failure has been quietly running your life. Come ready to examine how perfectionism and the love of God cannot truly coexist.

Discussion Questions

7 questions

1.Rebekah argues that the fear of failure is one of the primary forces keeping women from stepping into God's purposes. On a scale of 1 to 10, how much does fear of failure drive your decisions? What is the failure you are most afraid of right now?

2.She connects perfectionism to a distorted view of God — the sense that His approval is conditional on our performance. How has that view of God shaped your spiritual life, your work life, or your relationships? Where did that image of God come from?

3.Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 12:9 that God's power is 'made perfect in weakness.' What does it mean, practically, for God's power to show up in your weakness rather than your strength? Can you think of a time when that actually happened?

a.Why do you think God chose weakness as the vehicle for His power, rather than success?

4.Rebekah talks about the courage to begin again after failure — not just to survive a failure but to let it become the soil of something new. What failures in your past have God later redeemed or used? What was the journey from failure to fruitfulness like?

5.Romans 5:3–5 says that suffering produces perseverance, perseverance character, and character hope. Do you believe that process is happening in your own struggles? What makes it hard to trust that suffering is working something good in you?

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Closing Prayer

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Lord, we confess that we have loved our reputations more than Your purposes. We have played it safe, stayed small, and called it wisdom — when really it was fear. Forgive us for believing that Your love for us rises and falls with our performance. Thank You that Your power is perfected in weakness, that You are not embarrassed by our failures. Give us the courage to fail for the right reasons, to begin again, and to trust that You are working in the soil of our stumbling. In Jesus' name, Amen.

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