When We Make Mistakes

Can a man scoop fire into his lap without his clothes being burned? Can a man walk on hot coals without this feet being scorched? – Proverbs 6:27,28

Who hasn’t made a mistake? Whether in our jobs or at home, who hasn’t made a mistake? We’ve all experienced mishaps in judgment and errors in tasks. We’re human, life affects us – we lose our focus from time to time. When those things happen, we slip up.

However, there is grave difference in making a mistake and making a bad decision. Mistakes are accidental while decisions are intentional. Often times we’re tempted to chose detrimental ways that serve us immediately, failing to look ahead at the long-term consequences that may follow. The fact is, you can’t get too close to the fire without getting burned.

Satan spends a good amount of time weaving scenarios that act as catch 22’s – lose, lose situations; and when we opt into the web by choice, it’s hard to fight our way clear. Many times our decisions are based out of emotion (let’s use the death of a loved one as an example). We’re thrown into a situation that requires instant decisions to be made. Truthfully, the worst thing that will happen is that we spend an extravagant amount of money. These are decisions we make out of emotional pressure.

What about the intentional decisions –the ones that involve pre-planning, thought and consideration that effect our immediate positions. The determinations where our deepest desires come into play are the spots in our lives we must tread carefully. Allowing our wants to supersede our practicality often ends in disaster.

Our Father warns us of the temptations that Satan can use to tear apart lives that have proven stable. It’s important to understand that no man or woman alive is immune to sin. Sin happens ministers just like it happens to the average Joe on the street, and it happens because we are human. We all have weaknesses. The important thing to remember is, will we make a mistake or will we intentionally make a bad choice? The route we choose defines the consequence and when we allow ourselves to get to close to the fire – then yes, we will get burned.

Delve into the arms of the Savior, falling to your knees seeking His guidance, His peace, and His love. Thinking through those tasks that tempt us, and then laying them to side when we realize the consequences attached – backing away from the fire, will keep us from pain.

Prayer: Precious Father, guide us with wisdom into the decisions we face daily. Help us to make wise choices we will not regret.