Work for Peace: When Your Mistakes Become Your Testimony
- meetgodattheedgeof
- 2 hours ago
- 3 min read
Colossians 3:12-13
[12] Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. [13] Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.
This morning I was praying, and after a while of not feeling any leading from the Lord, my kids came downstairs. Then it hit me—I get to talk about another embarrassing thing I did. Awesome.
Yesterday, my son and I had a disagreement, and it got loud. Unfortunately, my son has the best of my wife and me, which means he's stubborn and likes to argue his point endlessly. Once he started saying hurtful things, I lost it and sent him to his room. What we argued about and what he said are not important. What is important is that I am the example, and I lost control. I was wrong.
The Holy Spirit convicted me right away, and I knew what I had to do. About 30 minutes later, we had to leave the house, and in the truck I apologized and asked for his forgiveness. Then the Lord blessed me, and my son apologized to me. In those moments, all that has to happen is my obedience, because that is the right thing to do. Not because if I do this my son will apologize, but because my Father asks this of me.
In your church, in your family, and at your job, you are expected to lead, even through your mistakes. Confession, reconciliation, and making peace are very important in all areas of our lives. The world has a habit of looking for failures and mistakes and associating them with the legitimacy of our faith. The most powerful thing we can show is that in our mistakes and failures, we are different, and those mistakes are not what define us. We get back up, we confess, we own it, we reconcile, and we work for peace.
All of this points to our Heavenly Father because that is not a normal human response. The best part is that the world is making us stand out more and more when we commit to this command from the Lord: Love each person as God loves you.
Nothing is off the table in this life of service to our Lord. If He can use our mistakes to reach someone we may not even know is watching, praise God! That is our main goal, right? What are you willing to sacrifice to see some of the billions of people on the path to destruction turn 180°? A little discomfort? A little embarrassment? That's a small price to pay for the souls of people in your life.
The hard truth is that it is far easier to push them away from God than it is to draw them in. Like it says in 1 Corinthians, "Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong."
Recognize the opportunity in each situation. Be bold in taking responsibility, and work for peace. Your leadership in these situations plays a pivotal role in your testimony of the Lord's work in your life. Take advantage of every opportunity, no matter the cost.
Sometimes, choosing to work for peace means admitting you were wrong first. It may cost you a little pride, discomfort, or embarrassment, but your obedience can show someone what the transforming work of God actually looks like.
Thank you, Father, for one more day. Amen.
2 Corinthians 10:3-5
[3] We are human, but we don’t wage war as humans do. [4] We use God’s mighty weapons, not worldly weapons, to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false arguments. [5] We destroy every proud obstacle that keeps people from knowing God. We capture their rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey Christ.
