Remember when you were a little kid and someone made a mistake? Someone would yell, “Do over,” and the game was played as if the mistake never happened. Life in the adult world isn’t like that. We make choices and we live with the results…good or bad. There are no do over’s.
I pondered this fact from two different angles.
First, I looked at the do over dilemma from the standpoint of sin. I used to do an exercise with one of my classes where they had to squeeze all of the toothpaste out of the tube. This was very easy and I awarded a small prize to the one who was fastest. Then I would offer a substantial award to the student who could put it all back into the tube. Of course, this is impossible, but they tried really hard and became frustrated when I pointed out that they had been unsuccessful. I used this to illustrate the fact that it’s easy to say something, but impossible to take it back. It can go much farther than that, though.
Whether it’s big or small, hidden or apparent, planned or unplanned, you don’t get a do over when it comes to sin. God is always there to forgive, but there are consequences to our sins. We may not see it immediately and we may never know how it affects another persons’ view of the God that we claim to serve, but sin affects eternity, for us and those around us.
It could also be a series of choices that make us look back and wonder where the time went. Maybe it’s the events of the past year of my life that has made me appreciate this fact. I sang a song once that said…
So many things I thought would bring me happiness
Some dreams that are realities today
Such an irony the things that mean the most to me
Are the memories that I've made along the way
What if we spend all of our time waiting for tomorrow only to find that while we were waiting, we missed out on the precious reality of today? What if what we were hoping to happen when the time was “right” caused us to miss what we really wanted. It only takes a small glimpse at the faces of my grandchildren to know how quickly time passes. We have to seize every moment and make it count. How sad to realize some day that while we were making plans, life happened and we missed it.
My challenge to anyone who chooses to read this and accept the seriousness of what I’m trying to say is this. Number one, when you sin, you can’t take it back, no matter how badly you may want to. It’s out there affecting people’s lives for eternity. Secondly, planning is important, but don’t let today pass by while you’re planning for tomorrow. There are no do over’s.
First, I looked at the do over dilemma from the standpoint of sin. I used to do an exercise with one of my classes where they had to squeeze all of the toothpaste out of the tube. This was very easy and I awarded a small prize to the one who was fastest. Then I would offer a substantial award to the student who could put it all back into the tube. Of course, this is impossible, but they tried really hard and became frustrated when I pointed out that they had been unsuccessful. I used this to illustrate the fact that it’s easy to say something, but impossible to take it back. It can go much farther than that, though.
Whether it’s big or small, hidden or apparent, planned or unplanned, you don’t get a do over when it comes to sin. God is always there to forgive, but there are consequences to our sins. We may not see it immediately and we may never know how it affects another persons’ view of the God that we claim to serve, but sin affects eternity, for us and those around us.
It could also be a series of choices that make us look back and wonder where the time went. Maybe it’s the events of the past year of my life that has made me appreciate this fact. I sang a song once that said…
So many things I thought would bring me happiness
Some dreams that are realities today
Such an irony the things that mean the most to me
Are the memories that I've made along the way
What if we spend all of our time waiting for tomorrow only to find that while we were waiting, we missed out on the precious reality of today? What if what we were hoping to happen when the time was “right” caused us to miss what we really wanted. It only takes a small glimpse at the faces of my grandchildren to know how quickly time passes. We have to seize every moment and make it count. How sad to realize some day that while we were making plans, life happened and we missed it.
My challenge to anyone who chooses to read this and accept the seriousness of what I’m trying to say is this. Number one, when you sin, you can’t take it back, no matter how badly you may want to. It’s out there affecting people’s lives for eternity. Secondly, planning is important, but don’t let today pass by while you’re planning for tomorrow. There are no do over’s.
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