Making a mistake, making a wrong choice, isn’t the end of the world. Many of us cripple ourselves – indefinitely and unnecessarily – if we think that we’re stuck with the mistakes we’ve made.
Granted, there are mistakes or wrong choices that simply cannot be undone. We just have to live with them, suffer the consequences, bear the burden we’ve put on ourselves.
To survive a situation like this, one requires the right perspective: do the best that we can to lessen the damage, remedy what can be remedied, and learn our lessons well. That’s the only way we can move forward – hopefully to a better place, not a worse one.
My mom always told me that “a mistake observed is a lesson learned.” Something like that.
But what if you’re the stupid one who made the mistake yourself? How can you redeem yourself? What practical things have people actually done to recover, bounce back, from a wrong choice they’ve made? I’ve observed a few cases that may encourage you.
I know this person who voted for the wrong candidate in the last elections. Huge, imponderable blunder. The first thing he did when he realized his mistake was to ask forgiveness from God. Yes, from God. Because the Bible warns us that whenever we sin against anyone, we sin against God, first of all.
Why? Well, because whenever we do something wrong, hurtful, unfair, cruel, etc. we are surely breaking one of God’s commandments. That’s guaranteed. And since He’s our Creator, we are accountable to Him first, before anyone else!
A sobering thought. Because logically, this also means that we’re not going to get away with anything. No one gets off God’s hook. No one. So if we want to lessen our consequences, it’s best to come clean, ask forgiveness from God immediately, and stop doing the wrong thing we’re doing. Immediately. That’s called repentance. That’s also called cutting your losses.
Anyway, back to my friend. How totally shocking that despite seeing all the red flags – the candidate’s immoral lifestyle, a reputation stained with graft and corruption, murder and violence, arrogance and disrespect for others – my friend, alas, still voted for this candidate. How could he have been such an idiot?!! I’m afraid to ask.
But here’s the good part, the turnaround, the saving grace. This man decided to redeem himself by making concrete plans and steps to convince his friends that they need to
vote for the right candidates next time. He meets with them online, and they strategize on how to spread the word to their own circles of influence. They’re doing this actively. That’s what I call bouncing back.
Another person I know made the mistake of bribing people to get contracts. Soon after, he realized that he was just slaving away for these corrupt people because they kept raising their kickbacks. So he put up a new business. When his new business picked up, he closed down the old one! He’s happy now because he’s not bribing anyone anymore. He’s working for himself, his family, his employees. Plus his conscience is clear. That’s the most important thing, he said.
Then there’s this lady who was made the horrible mistake of going into business with her boyfriend who was abusive and sponging money off her. When she went through counseling, she realized the awful mess she was in – and quickly, very decisively, she got herself out of the business, and the abusive relationship. Fast.
Soon after, she promptly put up a new business, but this time with trusted friends. Things were rough for a while, but she hung in there with her partners, and eventually – the business turned out well! She knows it’s because she got out of an abusive, immoral relationship. God honored her obedience.
We all make mistakes. Compromises. Bad choices. Maybe we have the wrong priorities. Or we’re in immoral situations that looked good and attractive – but only for a while.
Bad, sinful choices always, always bring ugly consequences in the end. We should know that by now.
Even if you’re in a bad place right now, you’re not caught in a rut, so don’t stay there. Get out of it. Get help from people you can trust. There’s always a way out.
That’s why Jesus has this open invitation:
Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are tired and have heavy loads, and I will give you rest. Accept my teachings and learn from me because I am gentle and humble in spirit, and you will find rest for your lives.
The burden that I ask you to accept is easy; the load that o give you to carry is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30).
