The Good News

“All we like sheep have gone stray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.”

– Isaiah 53:6

I messed up again! I’m such a failure. Am I enough?

Do any of these statements sound familiar? I’m sure more often than not, most of us have felt, heard, or said these statements at least once or twice in our lives.

I know I have (try once or twice a week). And I don’t say that proudly.

How many times have you messed up multiple times and felt like you were a failure because of it?

Whether you lost your patience with your children/spouse one too many times this week or couldn’t handle the pressure at work and you had to step out of the office for a time.

I can relate to both scenarios, but I’ll focus on one in this post.

This week, I have had moments when I felt like I was failing as a mother and steward of Christ because I kept raising my voice at my children when they wanted to go their way or were doing things that could pose a risk to themselves.

I had a moment when I called out to God and asked for forgiveness, wondering how He could keep forgiving me for the same thing over again. When will I get it right? I thought to myself.

Then I had a moment when I found myself explaining to my 5-year-old who said something along the lines of, “I’m a bad child because I keep messing up.”

What mother wants to hear that? I took a step back, hurt. Hurt that my baby thought she messed up so bad that she didn’t feel “good enough” or even loved because of her mistakes.

I knew at that moment that it was up to me to show love and explain to her about God’s love, forgiveness, and goodness.

We talked for a while as I explained that God loves us even when we mess up; that mommy and daddy love her even when she messes up. I told her that we ALL mess up -even mommy and daddy.

I told her that one of the best things about Jesus is that He willingly forgives us. That all we have to do is confess our sins, repent, and try to do better another day.

“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

– 1 John 1:9

She went on to ask why we have consequences and I explained that consequences help us realize right from wrong and how to learn from those wrong choices.

I told her that when we’re older, consequences are steeper, so mommy and daddy must teach her while she’s little because we love her and want her to stay safe and make wise choices as she’s growing up as well.

“Train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it.”

– Proverbs 22:6

Later on, I reminded myself of what I told my daughter. In these moments when I find myself making mistakes, there is a God who loves me. There is a God who sent His son to die for my sins, tearing the veil (that separated us from speaking directly to the Father) so that I could freely ask for forgiveness and find it.

“Then the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.”

– Mark 15:38

That, my friends, is the good news! Jesus died on the cross for our sins so that we would not be separated from Him. So that we can freely find forgiveness and restoration in Him. Through Him, we are saved, freed, forgiven, and made new!

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.

– 2 Corinthians 5:17

I want to encourage you today by reminding you of the good news. There is a God who loves you, forgives you, and wants to help you every step of the way.

Don’t give up! Give yourself grace.