Reason #354
I went to see Les Miserables tonight. It was a good movie. Pretty heart-wrenching with a lot of sad undertones, but overall I quite enjoyed it. Really, the movie is pretty much about second chances. I don't want to spoil the movie for anyone, so I'll just leave it at that for now.
Have you ever been given a second chance? Maybe you didn't deserve it, or maybe you did. Maybe you worked really hard for that second chance and it was only fitting that you received it. But maybe you messed up big time and there was no way in the world you should have been given a second chance. Because what you did was unacceptable. You caused a lot of hurt and pain. You were wrong, and you know it. There is no way you could justify your actions. And so you blew it. You gave it all up due to a moment of selfishness. Being pulled down by deceit and by your flesh, you blew it...big time. But you were given a second chance. You might have crawled back on your hands and knees begging for it, or you may have been offered that second chance without asking. It may have been given to you even though you didn't think you really wanted it, or deep down, you knew you didn't deserve it. But second chances are given for the taking and so did you take it?
The way I see it, there are two options when given a second chance. You can either 1.) take it and make the most of it or b.) waste it. Second chances are an opportunity to turn things around. Make what was wrong, right. Repair and rebuild, but do so by learning from what went wrong the first time around. Second chances can be a growing experience, too. A time where you reflect and change. Because you're wiser now. Sure you may also be a little more humble, too, but you're wiser and true, valuable wisdom is only gained through experience. But sometimes we go with option 2. We're given a second chance when we know we shouldn't have been. And so guilt and pride eat us up. Maybe we're really ashamed for what we did. We realize that this second chance is a great opportunity but we also realize we must admit our faults and that it's going to be a lot of work, so we waste it. We reject the opportunity and we don't take that second chance. Or maybe we don't even feel worthy of that second chance and so we don't accept it. It's given with no strings attached, but we push it away only to later realize that was one of the biggest mistakes we could have ever made. Second chances only come once and so, in my opinion, it's imperative that we always take them and make the most of them.
It's a new year. A second chance. What happened in 2012 happened in 2012. And I can tell you that in 2012, I was given a second chance. A second chance at something I felt so unworthy of. A second chance that I was slightly afraid to take. Because I was ashamed. I had been humbled and hurt and I wasn't so sure I deserved a second chance. But that's the thing about second chances, no one ever deserves them. Yet we serve a God of second chances. A God who is always remaking things. One who isn't concerned about what we did or didn't do, or when we did or didn't do it, rather He is a God who is concerned about where we're headed, so He gives us second chances... and third and fourth and fifth chances, too. Because He loves us. And whether or not we grovel at His feet begging for another chance or we're too embarrassed to ask for one, He'll give us another chance. And it's important that we make the most of this opportunity. Important that we accept it when it's offered because you can't ever get back a second chance. So I praise Him for second chances. For opportunities to turn things around and do it right the second time. And I'm grateful He is faithful to provide us more than one chance regardless of how much we may or may not actually deserve it.
#354 - For a new year full of chances to make the most of!
"So be careful how you live. Don’t live like fools, but like those who are wise. Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days. Don’t act thoughtlessly, but understand what the Lord wants you to do." - Ephesians 5:15-17
Have you ever been given a second chance? Maybe you didn't deserve it, or maybe you did. Maybe you worked really hard for that second chance and it was only fitting that you received it. But maybe you messed up big time and there was no way in the world you should have been given a second chance. Because what you did was unacceptable. You caused a lot of hurt and pain. You were wrong, and you know it. There is no way you could justify your actions. And so you blew it. You gave it all up due to a moment of selfishness. Being pulled down by deceit and by your flesh, you blew it...big time. But you were given a second chance. You might have crawled back on your hands and knees begging for it, or you may have been offered that second chance without asking. It may have been given to you even though you didn't think you really wanted it, or deep down, you knew you didn't deserve it. But second chances are given for the taking and so did you take it?
The way I see it, there are two options when given a second chance. You can either 1.) take it and make the most of it or b.) waste it. Second chances are an opportunity to turn things around. Make what was wrong, right. Repair and rebuild, but do so by learning from what went wrong the first time around. Second chances can be a growing experience, too. A time where you reflect and change. Because you're wiser now. Sure you may also be a little more humble, too, but you're wiser and true, valuable wisdom is only gained through experience. But sometimes we go with option 2. We're given a second chance when we know we shouldn't have been. And so guilt and pride eat us up. Maybe we're really ashamed for what we did. We realize that this second chance is a great opportunity but we also realize we must admit our faults and that it's going to be a lot of work, so we waste it. We reject the opportunity and we don't take that second chance. Or maybe we don't even feel worthy of that second chance and so we don't accept it. It's given with no strings attached, but we push it away only to later realize that was one of the biggest mistakes we could have ever made. Second chances only come once and so, in my opinion, it's imperative that we always take them and make the most of them.
It's a new year. A second chance. What happened in 2012 happened in 2012. And I can tell you that in 2012, I was given a second chance. A second chance at something I felt so unworthy of. A second chance that I was slightly afraid to take. Because I was ashamed. I had been humbled and hurt and I wasn't so sure I deserved a second chance. But that's the thing about second chances, no one ever deserves them. Yet we serve a God of second chances. A God who is always remaking things. One who isn't concerned about what we did or didn't do, or when we did or didn't do it, rather He is a God who is concerned about where we're headed, so He gives us second chances... and third and fourth and fifth chances, too. Because He loves us. And whether or not we grovel at His feet begging for another chance or we're too embarrassed to ask for one, He'll give us another chance. And it's important that we make the most of this opportunity. Important that we accept it when it's offered because you can't ever get back a second chance. So I praise Him for second chances. For opportunities to turn things around and do it right the second time. And I'm grateful He is faithful to provide us more than one chance regardless of how much we may or may not actually deserve it.
#354 - For a new year full of chances to make the most of!
"So be careful how you live. Don’t live like fools, but like those who are wise. Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days. Don’t act thoughtlessly, but understand what the Lord wants you to do." - Ephesians 5:15-17
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