Wrecking Our Lives

We cannot wreck our lives. Oh, we can make colossal mistakes and inflict irreparable harm on others and ourselves; we can choose options that bring on devastating consequences producing permanent loss and suffering. We are capable of making many really really bad choices. But we cannot wreck our lives!

How is that possible? Because of God’s power and grace. No matter what we do, God loves us. No matter how bad our situation, God can use it for good. Consider three great men who blew it: Moses, David, and Paul. All three were murderers.

Moses murdered an Egyptian man who was beating an Israelite. Had there been a trial, he would have been charged with voluntary manslaughter and would have been found guilty for sure. So, after killing the man, Moses ran. He was a fugitive for 40 years. His impulsive actions resulted in his losing everything—his home, his family, his status, his future, and any ambitions he might have had to aid the Israelites. Imagine the guilt Moses felt. Imagine his remorse, his shame. By all appearances, Moses had wrecked his life. Surely, Moses felt God had no use for him anymore.

David murdered his mistress’s husband to cover up his affair and hide the fact that he had fathered a child with her. Bathsheba’s husband, Uriah, was a loyal soldier in David’s army, a man who had nothing but honor and respect for his king. Had there been a trial, David would have been charged with first-degree murder and would have been found guilty for sure. The jury would have taken 30 minutes to agree on the verdict. David’s affair and premeditated murder could have resulted in his losing everything—the throne, his family, his status, his future, and any ambitions he might have had to lead the Israelites. Imagine the guilt David felt. Imagine his remorse, his shame. How could he remain king? How could people trust him? How would men follow him into battle ever again? By all appearances, David had wrecked his life. Surely, David felt God had no use for him anymore.

Paul murdered Christians. He had devoted his life to hunting down people who claimed to follow Jesus. He dragged them out of their houses, had them beaten and taken to prison. He “persecuted the church of God violently and tried to destroy it.”¹ Later he referred to himself as “a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent.”² Paul was on the road to Damascus to ask permission from the high priest to kidnap more of Jesus’ followers, put them in chains, and bring them to Jerusalem to be killed and was “still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord”³ when Christ appeared to him on that road, and he fell to the ground blinded by a light. Had Paul lived in the 21^st century, he would have been labeled a serial killer and charged with hate crimes. He would have served the rest of his life in prison and in some states would have been on death row until he was sent to the electric chair. Paul was as shocked as anyone when he became a follower of Jesus. He suddenly realized his whole life had been a mistake. He had killed innocent godly people. Imagine the guilt Paul felt. Imagine his remorse, his shame. Why would anyone ever listen to him again? How could people trust him? By all appearances, Paul had wrecked his life. Surely, Paul felt God had no use for him anymore.

And yet . . . God used all three of those damaged and flawed men to change the lives of millions of people. Their mistakes, those terrible decisions they made, turned out to be mere tools in the hand of God. They became humbler and stronger because of their past—not in spite of it. Although those murders may have haunted them the rest of their lives, at some point they must have decided to receive God’s grace, be healed and restored, and move on with a renewed passion for serving.

And so must we. Our sins, those horrible choices we made, can be forgiven. God will actually use our past to make us humbler and stronger. We might even be able to comfort and restore others who have fallen away. We cannot wreck our lives!

Unless . . . Unless we choose to remain in our sin and shame and live in ruins. We can elect to reject God’s mercy. The prodigal son must have felt he had wrecked his life. He came back to his father hoping to work as a slave and was ready to live in ruins. Instead, “while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.”⁴

We cannot wreck our lives!

¹Galatians 1:13   ²1 Timothy 1:13   ³Acts 9:1   ⁴Luke 15:20