On the counter above our kitchen sink, my wife keeps a little flip calendar.  It’s called, “If You Want Breakfast in Bed, Sleep in the Kitchen,” and each day it offers a bit of pithy wisdom.  Things like—“We all get heavier as we get older because there’s more information in our head,” or “Confidence is the feeling you have before you really understand the situation.”

One saying this week seemed appropriate for our current series on the Faces of Failure.  “It may be your purpose in life,” it read, “to simply serve as a warning to others.” 

One could certainly apply that to those we have been considering.  Nicodemus warns us about the failure of imagination.  The disciples illustrate what happens when we fail to trust Jesus.  Our Lord’s mother, brothers, and sisters reveal what willful bl…