Correcting Faulty or Bad Decisions

A unique privilege we have as God’s creation is to correct faulty or bad decisions. So much of life is spent learning to live with mistakes and correcting bad choices. Those who betray their spiritual and moral values may, by God’s grace and mercy, prepare themselves for a possible fresh start in life.

Bad beginnings can set a course for life, but hope is possible for a better future. Salvaging one’s life and relationships requires hard work and patience, brutal honesty, and changes in thinking patterns. Setbacks occur, but with determination you can rise up and salvage what is good, with the help of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Penalties incurred for experiencing a bad beginning can be amended for those committed to now living a healthy, productive life. This includes reclaiming what is positive and good in your life. Ask the Lord Jesus Christ to open your heart and mind to the prospects of making a fresh start with your life.         

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If we confess our sins, we can depend on Him to do what is right – He will forgive our sins and wash away every wrong.

~1 John 1:9 Beck – New Testament in the Language of Today 

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Hope for Undeserving People

Explaining why God promises new beginnings to undeserving people is grounded completely in the fact that God loves us, otherwise Jacob would have been unlikely to receive God’s help. Jacob lied, stole, cheated and was totally self-absorbed. Yet God appeared to him in a dream when he was desperate enough to hear a voice other than his own.

          Listen to what God communicated to Jacob: “I will give you and your descendants the land where you are sleeping. The people of the earth will be blessed through you and your offspring. I’ll be with you and will watch over you wherever you go and will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised,” meaning within Jacob’s lifetime.   

          God reminds us, “My thoughts are not your thoughts; my ways are not your ways.” God assures each of us that he can use a person who has wasted their life, and He nevertheless stands ready to give us a new beginning. What matters is what you’re willing to do now. God is ready to help you turn your life around and make a new start that honors Him. 

Crisis! A Wake-up Call to Change

Trouble comes our way often by our own invitation. It’s not that we intend to behave in ways that invite trouble, but we passively or directly engage in behaviors that invite negative consequences. Those consequences are wake-up calls to make changes in our attitudes and actions. Jacob got a wake-up call on the road to Haran.

In dreams he saw a ladder or stairway extending from earth to heaven with angels ascending and descending on it. Can you visualize this picture? It gets better. Above the stairway stood the Lord God speaking to him directly. He told Jacob, “I am the Lord, the God of Abraham your grandfather and Isaac your father."

Prior to this life-changing dream, Jacob’s life was defined as self-directed and self-centered; he was a cheater and a fraud. In his dream God promised him a new beginning, not because he deserved it but because God saw potential where no one else could. He promised Jacob a future with hope. Is this what you need? God will give it to you.  

Turning Points for New Beginnings - Part 3

My dad sometimes reminisced over opportunities he had let slip away. He wasn't much of a risk-taker, but in a real crunch he would muster up the courage to do what was necessary. When he needed a good job to support his family, his brother who worked at an aircraft plant told him about an available job. All he had to do was apply and the job was his.

Taking this job was a turning point for him. Turning points are those moments in time when change and decision-making are required but may be accompanied by anxiety or fear. However, these feelings can be thought of as part of significant decisions and required changes. Facing down these feelings is possible by believing God is always at work for your good.

Insight helps you see possibilities for starting over or changing directions. What gives power to insight is trust and faith in God's unfailing love for you. His desire is to help you through the turning points of life. Yes, God put his claim on your life but will never take possession without your permission.  

Turning Points for New Beginnings - Part 1

My grandfather was a restless soul who periodically would sell his farming equipment and seek out new exploits. He believed strongly in new beginnings. Starting over for him was more than a change of atmosphere. His expectations for a better life were highlighted by faith in God to give him a meaningful purpose for his existence.

John Wesley, founder of the Methodist church, served as a missionary in Georgia from 1735 to 1738. His purpose was to convert the Indians and save his own soul. Returning to England as a failure, he received Christ Jesus by faith on May 24, 1738. His purpose for life was changed. He preached salvation by faith in Jesus Christ for the next fifty years.

This example of a new beginning illustrates God’s desire for everyone. God provided John Wesley with a lifeline to insight, the ability to see God’s truth, which enabled Wesley to rise up from failure and despair to find purpose that endured for a lifetime. Could this be what God has placed before you at this very moment? 

Never Too Late to Change - Part 2

Come with me for a moment and visualize the scene of a wayward son returning home. Imagine the joy his father feels when he sees his strong-willed son walking toward the house and wondering what kind of reception awaits him. This father had permitted his immature son to leave home with his inheritance and dreams that would result in abysmal failure.

After talking with his son, the father detected a radical change in his son's attitude that inspired him to shout with joy, "This son of mine was dead and is alive. He was lost and is found." A man separated from his wife said he was willing to work toward reconciliation when he detected in his wife something that gave him hope for a new beginning.

Everyone is capable of dying emotionally to another person or even God when joy no longer exists in a relationship. If this is your situation, the Lord Jesus Christ is waiting and watching for your return. Jesus will eagerly receive you back as a faithful son or daughter and restore the joy of your salvation.