Rev. Judith Cooke
Most of us dislike making mistakes. We often feel bad about ourselves when we say the wrong thing, make a blunder at work, break something special to us, accidentally hurt someone’s feelings. How often do we beat ourselves up for mistakes we make? People will often say more terrible things to themselves than they would ever dream of saying to another person.
However, not all mistakes are bad. Ruth Wakefield invented chocolate chips, after a mistake making chocolate cookies. An engineer at GE named James Wright tried to help the government during WW2 by making rubber from silicon, which did not work; but, his mistake became the creation of Silly Putty. Penicillin, microwave ovens, fireworks were all the result of mistakes.
Throughout the Bible, God valued people who made mistakes: Noah, Moses, David, Peter, and Paul – to name a few. This tells us that not only does God accept us when we make mistakes, God even uses us with all our shortcomings and slip-ups.
While it is true that you are not perfect, you are still “fearfully and wonderfully made” (Psalm 139:14) by God, who loves you, values you, and utilizes you – just as you are right now.
However, not all mistakes are bad. Ruth Wakefield invented chocolate chips, after a mistake making chocolate cookies. An engineer at GE named James Wright tried to help the government during WW2 by making rubber from silicon, which did not work; but, his mistake became the creation of Silly Putty. Penicillin, microwave ovens, fireworks were all the result of mistakes.
Throughout the Bible, God valued people who made mistakes: Noah, Moses, David, Peter, and Paul – to name a few. This tells us that not only does God accept us when we make mistakes, God even uses us with all our shortcomings and slip-ups.
- When has a mistake you made turned out to be a blessing?
- When have your faults be accepted by another?
- How does God use your shortcomings in positive ways?
While it is true that you are not perfect, you are still “fearfully and wonderfully made” (Psalm 139:14) by God, who loves you, values you, and utilizes you – just as you are right now.