As a dog returns to its vomit, so fools repeat their folly (Proverbs 26:11
There is a proverb that goes like this: “of whom can it be said, he never, ever repeats the same mistake over again?” Oh wait…that’s not in the Bible at all. But it sure seems like it should be.
Sometimes I can just picture God, fingers rubbing on his forehead: “Oh, Greg. Greg. Seriously? Again? We have dealt with this too many times, even for me to count. And here you go doing the very same thing all over again. Will you never learn?”
No, Lord. I am truly sorry. I am still that dull.
Of course, we each try to learn from our own mistakes, but that isn’t always the case, and we are destined to repeat the same ones over and over and over again. But in truth — where is God in our faults?
Does he choose to leave us in the muck and mire of what we have done to ourselves? Or does he continually lift us up and help us turn away from those mistakes?
Escaping Our Faults
If you’re anything like me, you have relived many of your past mistakes repeatedly in your mind. You wonder what your life would have been…if only you had, or if only you hadn’t.
In hindsight, we can all see clearly enough to ascertain today what we should have done in yesterday's past. At my age, I have a lot of those yesterday pasts.
None of us is perfect — nor will we ever be. We all have made mistakes at one time or another. Some are more costly than others — with a far greater impact on our lives.
We say things we shouldn’t say or take actions we shouldn’t take — or wish we had made different decisions.
More than once, I knew, going in, I was making the wrong decision and went full steam ahead anyway. For a very long time, I tortured myself over countless mistakes.
It took many years to come to the realization — that we cannot go back into the past and change the mistakes that we made. Yet, God has taken all my mistakes and somehow, someway, guided me in the right direction to lead me to this very life I have right now.
It is important, too, to understand there can be a difference between mistakes and sins. Of course, we can make mistakes that are not sinful: quitting a job we regret later, for instance. But it always seems like the most harmful mistakes are those where we knew better.
Buying the wrong car because we failed to research it is one thing — buying a car we cannot afford in order to impress others is quite another. We knew right and chose wrong.
No, mistakes are not all the same. Yes, some are far more damaging than others. We simply try to minimize the damage and maintain whatever control we can.
None of us can escape the decisions we made in yesterday’s past. But maybe we aren’t supposed to.
With God’s amazing grace, maybe we don’t have to. With God’s help, maybe the whole idea is to learn to live with the mistakes — to learn and grow from those mistakes. Maybe, God uses our mistakes — as well as our sins — to grow closer to him.
God Uses Our Mistakes for Good
But it is comforting to know that not only are we not alone, but every other person who has ever walked the planet is right there with us. Indeed, when we read Scripture, we struggle to find anyone who was without sin — save for Christ alone.
Even the most well-known biblical figures had sinned and made mistakes in their lives. Often, a great deal of sin.
- David impregnated a woman who was not his wife and committed murder.
- Saul (Paul) persecuted and executed the disciples of Jesus.
- Jacob was conniving and cheated his brother Esau out of his inheritance.
- Peter denied Jesus, not once, or even twice, but three times. Right after Jesus had told Peter, he would do exactly that.
- Joseph loved to laud it over his brothers, who ultimately got so angry they sold Joseph into slavery. These brothers became the heads of the Twelve Tribes of Israel.
The story of Joseph is well-known, of course. Through his slavery, he ultimately became a trusted confidant of Pharoah, who bestowed upon him great authority and responsibility.
Upon reuniting with his family, then the death of their father Jacob — his brothers became concerned Joseph would seek revenge. Instead, Joseph said this:
As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today (Genesis 50:20, ESV).
We never know how God will use our errors, our mistakes, for the sake of good.
It seems to be human nature that we do not turn to God in times of prosperity. Perhaps we feel then like we don’t need him. Instead, we turn to God in times of trial and struggle. Times of pain.
When we turn to him, God takes the pain of our mistakes and turns them into good. Our good, as well as the good of others.
God knows we are going to err because he knows we are broken — that is precisely why he sent his Son to die for us. But also why he has given us his Holy Spirit to guide us and protect us. A counselor who helps us know and do what is right.
But when we don’t, God can and does do unimaginable things with our mistakes. He is “able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us” (Ephesians 3:20).
In his second letter to the Corinthians, Paul describes a “thorn in the flesh”— “a messenger of Satan.” While there is no definitive explanation of what that thorn is — it is a fairly safe assumption that Paul’s thorn was a sin or temptation that he simply could not shake.
Paul said this thorn was given to him to keep him from “becoming conceited.” Then Paul said this:
Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong (2 Corinthians 12:9-10).
God used Paul’s thorn to keep Paul from growing conceited — to keep him humble, knowing he too was as broken as those he was trying to teach. And he used it to help Paul recognize his dependence on God’s strength.
Living with the Consequences
When we mess up; when we make our mistakes; when we sin, God lets us, no, wants us to live with the consequences of our missteps. He uses those consequences to teach us, guide us, strengthen us — and help others.
As a parent, one of the most difficult things to do is to let you watch your children make their mistakes. You see them going through difficulties and challenges.
You know that falling off their bikes a time or two or getting angry learning to tie their shoes will help them learn and grow — and make them better for it.
We know they will mess up — making the same mistakes time and again. We don’t keep them from those mistakes; rather, we use those occasions as opportunities to correct them and teach them, to strengthen them — because sometimes they need that nudge or correction to put them back on the right path. Our children learn to expect — even to want (albeit unknowingly) — those corrections.
So, it is with our Father in heaven. He lets us make our mistakes so we can learn and grow stronger in him. He uses them to keep us humble, or else we might grow conceited. He nudges us back onto his path, into his will.
By giving us the Holy Spirit, God chose to provide us with a counselor to guide us — knowing we will mess up. Then, when we do make mess up, to help us learn from those mistakes. To grant us grace as only he can — even it is needed over and over and over again.
For further reading:
Does God Want Us to Learn from Our Mistakes?
God's Sovereignty and Your Mistakes
Photo Credit: ©iStock/Getty Images Plus/Marjan_Apostolovic
