Mistakes

Romans 8:18 - 21

I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.  The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed.  For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope, that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God.

It is three o'clock in the morning and my phone rings.  On the other end comes an anguished cry, "It’s ruined!   It won't work!  I don't know what to do!"

The answer flows easily from my lips, "Go back to the last correct stitch."

The listener however is usually reluctant to unravel her yarn.  She wants to redesign the pattern to incorporate the mistake.  "Maybe no one will notice."

Mistakes left to their own devices eventually ruin the entire piece.  No matter how many rows you have stitched since the mistake, it will not heal and it will not disappear.  You must go back and fix it.  Unravel beyond the mistake.  Re- read the directions.  Call a friend and ask for advice.  Sometimes you may have to cut a chunk of yarn away and reconnect to the ends.

The important thing is not to give up.  Learn from your mistakes, improve your skills, adjust your actions, re-read your directions, and go back to the point where you were on the right path.

Do the same with mistakes in your life; and in other’s.

Dear Jesus,

I’m sorry.  I don’t know how it happened, but it did.  Help me find my way back to You.  Keep my feet on your path.  Amen.