Mistakes

You’ve probably heard, “The only people who don’t make mistakes (err in understanding, perceptions, interpretation, judgment, do something that results in unintended, possibly regretful consequences) are those who don’t do anything.” Every time I hear it, I think, Not doing anything might be the biggest mistake one could make. Then there’s the cliché, “Everybody makes mistakes.” If everybody makes mistakes then nobody is doing nothing. I think we can conclude living invites mistakes. Before a mistake can be rectified one has to admit the mistake and want to fix it.

Types of mistakes, their consequences and influences varies considerably.

There are mistakes from which we cannot only recover but, as one young lady so eloquently put it, persisting until a solution is found is to ‘progress in life’. If at first you don’t succeed… I do a lot of progressing in life for the simple reason I rarely get anything right the first time. I’ve lost count of how the times this article has been edited.

Whether in business or personal relationships, finding one has lived years according to a false teaching, persisting in getting it right cannot only turn regrets into wisdom, but can create self-confidence and strong relationships.

Progressing in life not only requires learning but taking responsibility. Getting caught up in a moment of passion, uncontrolled emotions and desires can lead to mistakes of various magnitudes. In many such cases there is no correcting the mistake. Dealing with consequences positively becomes necessary if the mistake is to be turned from doing damage. Even if the perpetrator refuses responsibility someone is burdened with outcomes. Unplanned parenthood might top the list of these types of mistakes. A life, lives, and quality of lives are at stake.

No two days are alike. We change daily. The world is growing more complicated and more problematic due to many things, but certainly, honest mistakes. As discussed above honest mistakes can be opportunities for life to progress.

I’m not sure there’s such a thing as a dishonest mistake. Some have and continue to label acts of infidelity, thievery, getting caught in lies, cheating in business, greed, provoking others, etc. as mistakes rather than as offenses against God and His moral standard.

Is there a difference between a mistake and a sin? Indeed, there is. Any sin is inherently a violation of life, a one-hundred-and-eighty-degree departure from progressing to regressing. Existence only qualifies as life when one’s choices are guided by God’s moral standard. Webster define mistakes and sins differently and to those who err while diligently walking according to God’s moral standard to, ‘Love mercy, be just and walk humbly with Him’, the difference is that between hypocrisy and sincerity.

Regrets are natural responses to mistakes, especially those requiring a personal sacrifice to correct. Genesis 6:6 And it repented the Lord that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. This verse explicitly implies God viewed creating us a mistake. Many would argue, “God doesn’t make mistakes.” But it’s not an argument that holds up according to the fact mistakes are defined by regrets, in extreme cases are associated with grief and if to be corrected require self-sacrifice. Unlike many of us who choose to walk away from our mistakes, God chose to do His part in correcting the consequences. Since one cannot give what he doesn’t possess it’s obvious God is the ultimate human and it’s also obvious we shouldn’t err in thinking that’s all He is. It should also be apparent, and every parent knows this that any time you create anything and give it freewill you take a chance. A fear many warn could and might already be occurring with AI (artificial intelligence). Maybe if you accept God admits He erred in creating us it’ll cause you to walk closer with Him. And you’ll see mistakes not as unresolvable catastrophes, but as opportunities that when handled with self-sacrifice result in a Progression of Life.