Photo by Stuart Miles at freedigitalphotos.net

There are times when you have to bite the bullet and say you were wrong. You made a mistake. You totally blew it and it was all your fault.

I hate having to say that.

I like to be good at everything. I like to learn new things and feel like I can do anything I set my mind to. So to mess up, or make a mistake… well, it doesn’t sit well with me.

I am the same way at work. I like to feel like I am competent, indispensable, excellent at what I do. I suppose there are days when I am on top of things, but most of the time, I mess up. And sometimes I mess up BIG. 

I had that kind of day last week where I stumbled across something in my file that had been missing. I could have just said nothing and no one would have known that the missing item was all my fault, but then I would know and it would eat at me, knowing that I was in the wrong. Keeping it a secret just to make myself look better would always be a weight on my shoulders.

So I bit the bullet and told my boss. Then I called the person who KNEW they had turned it in and said “Yes, you did turn it in and I lost it. It was all my fault and I am so sorry.”

Yes, it was an honest mistake, and still, I do not know how it got in last year’s file…weird. But it was still a mistake and one that I needed to own up to.

The thing is, we all make mistakes. We are not perfect and never will be. But saying you are sorry and admitting your guilt is the first step to healing. 

It’s the same way in our spiritual walk. We are fallen people who will never hit the bull’s eye. We will always miss the mark. But we have a Savior who takes away the sins of the world. He loves it when we come to him and say we messed up, because then he can wrap His strong and loving arms around us and say, “It’s okay. I got you covered.” And He does. His blood…the blood shed for us…covers our sins and makes us pure and clean…spotless. We are mistake-free in His eyes. 

I don’t know about you, but I like that way of living much better. Just admitting I’m wrong, gaining forgiveness, and feeling free.

Freedom is why Christ came, you know.

Have a blessed Monday!