At Innovation3, Tim Keller of Redeemer Presbyterian Church (New York, NY) discussed failure in ministry. Specifically, he addressed how to turn your biggest idol into your biggest benefit.

Everybody in ministry essentially bases their salvation on how our ministry is doing, and therefore, our hearts our contradicting our message. Until you experience personal failure, you will not even know it.

You have got to go after God for blessing.

Jacob (from Genesis) spent his life trying to get blessing, but he did not get it until he went after God in Genesis 32.

Human blessing will kill you because it never seems to last more than 5 minutes.

You have to take the gospel, and you have to see where you are not believing the gospel, and you must pound it into your heart day after day.