Mistakes

Everyone makes mistakes. Some of us make more than others, and certainly it seems we make more than our fair share. Mistakes come in many forms. There are mistakes that are just that ~ mistakes. Your mistake might be making a wrong turn, forgetting to buy milk, or forgetting to put said milk in the refrigerator after you went back to the store to buy it.

Other mistakes are far more serious. I'm referring to those mistakes that really should be called sin. We tend to gloss over some of the sin in our lives and just call them mistakes. While sins of commission certainly qualify as mistakes, we must come to a place in our lives when we deal with sin as sin, and repent of it. That repentance will result in running as far and as fast as we can away from the sin.

When we make a mistake, whether the wrong turn kind, or the more serious sinful kind, we should determine to learn from it. If I have been confronted by my sin, my remorse should never merely be one of being caught. The godly remorse shows sorrow and a genuine desire to make it right. Repentance will involve turning from sin and moving back toward Christ. He wants to forgive and restore our relationship with Him, but it cannot happen with known, unconfessed sin in our lives.

David, when he was confronted by Nathan in his sin with Bathsheba, prayed that God would create in him a clean heart, renew a right spirit within him, and restore the joy of his salvation. David promised that he would devote himself to teaching transgressors their ways. He learned from his mistake, er, sin, and earnestly sought God's forgiveness. It would produce a complete change of heart attitude in his life.

I'm thankful that God forgives our sin. I'm glad to be able to claim John's reminder that if we confess our sin, He is faithful and just to forgive our sin and cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9). I'm glad God is gracious and longsuffering. He is patient with us and forgives us again and again. But, that's no excuse to keep on making the same mistakes, committing the same sin time and again.

While learning from our mistakes is vitally important, and God's grace continues to cover a multitude of sin, consider taking this thought with you: Living for Christ trumps any mistake we may learn from ~ all the time. In other words, don't try to see how many mistakes you can make so you can learn from them. Instead, strive to live for Christ all the time.