Today has been one of those days I’ve been saying, “my bad” over and over again for various areas I’ve dropped the ball, missed the mark, and fallen short. No-one likes having to own up to their mistakes – neither do I, so don’t let the title of this little blog fool you because I hate having to raise my hand, eyes dropped to the floor, and say, “umm, that is my fault.”
Recently, (just yesterday, in fact) I heard an inspiring sermon based on the life and character of Abraham from Genesis 11-12 & Hebrews 11. The premise and thesis of the sermon was that Abraham was accredited to be a man of faith. Personally, I’ve always scratched my head as to why scripture called Abraham “faithful” when he made some repeated bonehead decisions. What exactly am I talking about? Well, God shows up to Abraham and promises him a son through his wife, Sarah; although they are already ridiculously old and childless. As Abraham waits on God’s promise and follows God he makes some pretty dumb decisions. How many times did he fail to trust God and lied to those he feared saying, “no, she’s not my wife – she’s my sister?!” (Not something you should say about your wife in any era of history) And, when God’s timing didn’t suit them, Abraham and Sarah took God’s promise into their own hands and Abraham had a child with his wife’s maidservant, Hagar. (Not God’s plan, nor what God said – come on, Abraham! Have a little faith!) But, when God pulled through and blessed Abraham with a son, Issac - Abraham’s faithfulness is tested and God asks him to take his son and sacrifice him (no, the Bible doesn’t promote human sacrifice – check the context and realize that God’s plan was significantly bigger than Abraham’s understanding). But – here is the thing – Abraham is obedient and faithful, he takes his beloved and cherished son (his most precious gift) up the mountain to the altar, knife ready in hand; because, as Hebrews 11 says, “Abraham believed God could raise his son from the dead…” (Not because he thought it was going to be easy, but because God was in control – no matter what!)
Okay, Abraham, you win – that’s faith! The God he, honestly, was just getting to know was, in Abraham’s mind author of life and more power than death itself.
So, why am I so thrilled with my recent mistakes? Well, I’m not thrilled, but I am gaining new perspective to ask myself, “could God still be growing more faithfulness within me despite my mistakes?” From what I see in scripture, I’d say – yes! Often mistakes and failures have a way of making us want to quit and say, “I better stop while I’m ahead” – as if we ever were. Instead, I am encouraged to look at my stumbles as opportunities to trust even deeper, even further, in the promises of my God to not only remain faithful to his promise, but faithful to keep his promise despite my human frailness and – let’s be honest – stupidity. Abraham trusted God to be ready to raise the dead – how much more can I trust God’s perfect faithfulness in my circumstances? (Yeah, probably a lot more) For whatever reason, my mistakes have caused me to lean closer into the presence of my Lord and God to say, “Dad, my bad. Can you help me? I need you.”
