Do Overs!

In the summer time my neighbor had a basketball goal. I was never very good one on one playing basketball; he was taller and had more reach. But I could shoot good enough to keep up playing “horse.” We took turns shooting and trying to duplicate each other’s shot and when one missed the other got a point and could choose the next shot. Sometimes the game got intense and we resorted to more creative measures to get the other to miss. So, we had to come up with some rules. You could not actually touch the player who was shooting or directly interfere with the shot. If you did the player was allowed a “do over.” He got to do it over again.

It would be nice if everything in life allowed for a “do over” when we make a mistake or someone interferes with us. We could have made better grades in school. We would all have started saving money earlier. We would have no regrets about anything. It could all be fixed with a “do over.”

God has given us the next best thing to a “do over.” He provided a way for us to be forgiven for all our sins, through faith in Jesus, and start our life at a fresh new point as if the past had never happened. It is not a total “do over” in the sense that we cannot go back and fix things and still have to live with the physical consequences of some of our mistakes. But it is as close as we can get from God’s perspective. He forgets our mistakes and His memory is the one that counts in eternity.

Spring represents God’s attitude about life. Every year the earth gets a fresh start. This new start has to build on the growth and decay of previous years. But that can also be a good thing when we allow God to do the building. He is the master designer. If He can build a universe out of nothing He can build a life for you out of what you have so far.

That is what it really means when Paul says, “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love the God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” (Romans 8:28) Is it time for a “do over” in your life?

Dr. Robin