The oft-cited bromide states, “ventures may fail, but entrepreneurs do not.” In other words, failing or failure is an event—and does not stigmatize a person. These events are speedbumps in the back alleys of life. For every entrepreneur this is important to bear in mind as failure will sooner or later rear its ugly head. The question is not whether entrepreneurs will fail—but what they will do with it when it happens.

There are US statistics that approach the status of urban myth: 80% of all successful entrepreneurs have went bankrupt previously. The percentage may not be that high, but the gist of the statistic has the ring of truth. Many entrepreneurs are swinging for the fences to hit a home run and not a single—and strike outs are inevitable.

Risk and the prospects of failure are ever present for entrepreneurs. Why? Entrepreneurship at its core is about innovation, thinking outside the box and pushing boundaries. When you are doing new, different and innovative things, not everything is bound to work out as hoped or expected.

Of the more than 300 successful entrepreneurs I have interviewed since 2005 all of them have failed at various points in their journey, whether in specific investments or business ventures. If someone claims never to have failed, they are related to Pinocchio. These entrepreneurs were generally sanguine about their failures, realizing that not everything works out as intended. Some would say that as long as they succeeded a few more times than they failed, then the would make out alright.

The trials and tribulations of entrepreneurs would not be out of place in a biblical context. The Bible is rife with flawed individuals who fail repeatedly (Peter denying Jesus thrice) and often spectacularly (David and his dalliance with Bathsheba). Humans are fallen creatures who are prone to make mistakes—and yet God can use them for his glory.

The perils of risk-taking are part of the entrepreneurial journey. The Bible also has important lessons on failure in relation to risk-taking, such as the Parable of the Talents. The servant who received five Talents and produced a double return—and took investment risk—was commended for a job well done. By contrast, the servant who buried the single Talent in the ground and did not even get a return from a bank—took zero risk—was condemned as a wicked and slothful servant. In short, Christians are empowered to take risks with their talents for an increased return.

What lessons can we learn from failure? First, the key to overcoming failure is to recognize that it can be beneficial. God wants us to learn from our failures. He especially wants us to learn not to make the same mistake again. They key is to learn. In relation to the mistake of getting deceived we often hear: “If it happens once shame on you; it if happens twice, shame on me.” We need to face our weaknesses and accept personal responsibility for our actions. You cannot correct a problem you are not willing to face.

Second, sometimes failure is in the context of not reaching goals we have set for ourselves. It is said that it is worse to set low goals and reach them, rather than to set high goals and not reach them. Most of us have dreams that we never fully realize. That does not mean we have failed. Sometimes we overlook our successes because we focus all our attention on what we cannot do—but we have still achieved much.

Third, all human beings fail. If you haven’t failed than you haven’t tested your limits. True success is not avoiding failure, but learning what to do with it. We need to keep persisting.  The author of Proverbs reminds us that a righteous man may fall seven times and rise again (Proverbs 24:16). There are important spiritual and business lessons to be learned from experiencing and learning from so-called failure.

Lastly, failure may be the seed of future success. One great example is Bobby Gruenewald, founder of the You Version Bible App, which has been downloaded over 200 million times.  Bobby is Pastor of Innovation at Life Church, Oklahoma City, OK. He was working with the church to use his market-proven hi-tech expertise to propagate the Gospel. Their first approach was to set up a biblically-oriented website. It didn’t work. They shut it down. As part of the process, however, Bobby and his team reviewed what lessons could be learned. They thought they might have a good product, but the wrong platform. They used the content and then designed an app. Apple was just starting to get traction with the iphone and they authorized the first 200 apps, which included the YouVersion Bible App. In the first few days they ha 80,000 or so downloads—an have not looked back. This success was born of failure.

In short, so-called failure is part of the entrepreneurial journey, an opportunity to learn, and to have hard-earned lessons that will sow the seeds of future success. While individuals may have “failed” they are not “failures.” Entrepreneurs are never failures.