And then there is a second chance….
Have you ever wished you could redo a decision? Maybe take a different path or react differently to a situation. Wished there was a second chance? So have we many, many times. We are human and we need second chances every day.
But we serve a God who specializes in second chances.
We have had many conversations, over cups of coffee, about how God has given us His grace in moments when we shouldn’t have received it. “But for the grace of God, there go I” is a sentence we have said over ourselves time and time again. It could have been us left in addiction, it could have been us left to our own devices, but due to God’s second chances we are new creatures.
“Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.”
2 Corinthians 5:17 NASB
He makes all things new. We have said that sentence over our relationships with our children, our marriages, our friendships and our outlook on life in general. So many times we, being totally human, have had to hit repeat again and start over, even with God.
Both of us where raised in church and probably even born on the front pew, but we still have to start over all the time. If a seasoned Christian tells you differently, don’t believe them. They are not perfect either. We are all full of bad decisions, sin and are nothing without Jesus’s daily grace covering a multitude of our sins.
The purpose of the cross all and of itself is second chances. Before Jesus died and rose again, if you sinned, there were very scary consequences waiting for you. No grace, no redemption. It was crime and punishment.
Now we get second chances, and third and fourth and fifth…. and no matter how many times it takes us to get it right, Jesus will be there to pick us up, dust us off and start us over again.
Sometimes our repeat chances and decisions will change the direction of our walk completely. Whether that be good or bad. But God always places people strategically in your path, already knowing the friendships that will lift each other up and strengthen each other’s walk, and sometimes He even uses our second chances and bad choices to lead us there.
If you are in need of a second, or third or 47th chance tonight…. talk to the Redeemer. And if you failed miserably at keeping up with the 30 day challenge, guess what….just start over and “hit repeat again”.
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30 day challenge – read more repeat again” previous blog…
1. Write down a list of things you need to pray for
- This is not a wish list
- Try not to just make them all about you
- Keep the list small and purposeful
2. Spend at least 30 minutes in uninterrupted prayer
- A scheduled time not just throughout the day
- Ideas: 30 minute drive to work, actually getting up early, skipping a tv show, praying before bed
3. Read at least one scripture passage a day
- Pick a book of the Bible and read a passage each day
- Follow our blog for daily scripture
4. And if you fail one day out of 30 –HIT REPEAT AGAIN!
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