Humble Pie Can Be Tasty!

Dear Friends,

Yesterday I had a conversation with someone from our church who is getting evicted from her home. This woman has made several bad choices over the past year, and the result is that she’s now suffering the consequences - one of which is losing her home. It was a difficult conversation to have because my friend is unwilling to admit that she’s done anything wrong.  Instead, her comments were all focused on either how unfair the circumstances are, or on the fact that other people are “trying to bring her down”.

As she talked, I was reminded of Proverbs 28:13, which says:  “A person who refuses to admit his mistakes can never be successful. But if that person confesses those mistakes, another chance is given.” In this passage, we're reminded that in order to get a fresh start, we need to begin by admitting we’ve done something wrong. In other words, we need to admit WHY we need a fresh start.

The reality of life is that we all make mistakes - whether it’s in our words, our actions, our attitudes, our thoughts, our relationships, our work, or our responsibilities. We cannot escape the fact that we’re human, and therefore, we make mistakes. For some of us, it will happen more often than it will for others - but the bottom line is, it’s something we all experience. That’s why it’s so critical that we are willing to admit when we’ve made a mistake - and then let God use that mistake to teach us, and to help us avoid making the same mistake again.

For those of us who want to follow God, this truth is even more relevant because we can’t ask God for His forgiveness unless we’re willing to admit we’ve done something that needs to be forgiven. 1 John 2:9-10 puts it like this:  “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. However, if we claim we have not sinned, we make Him out to be a liar and His word has no place in our lives.” Those are strong words, but they remind us that if we want to live the new life God offers us, then we need to be people who can humbly admit when we’re wrong.

So today, let’s set aside our pride and admit the mistakes we’ve made. Whether it’s in our relationships, or in our work, or in our responsibilities, or in our walk with God, let’s humbly admit to God that we were wrong, and then let Him give us the words to admit wrongdoing to the people we’ve hurt by our mistakes. And then, let’s allow God to give us the fresh start that we need.

Amen?

Daniel