It’s not every day that you get a second chance. Most of the time you’re glad to get a first one. “Get this to me by 3 p.m. or you’re fired!” “I’m sorry, but your grades aren’t high enough to admit you to the program.” “I don’t love you anymore.”

The fact is, we all fail. We do things we regret. We say things we deplore. And we hurt people we love.

But we’re not alone in this. Even the Apostle Paul was no stranger to failure.

“I do not understand the things I do. I do not do what I want to do, and I do the things I hate.” (Romans 7:15)

He goes on: “I want to do the things that are good, but I do not do them. I do not do the things I want to do, but I do the bad things I do not want to do.”

Have you been there? Have you shared Paul’s frustration? If you have, then listen as he shows us the way out of our despair:

“Who will save me from this body that brings death? I thank God for saving me through Jesus Christ our Lord! So now, those who are in Christ Jesus are not judged guilty” (Romans 7:24-8:1)

If I had been Paul, I might have put a “Hallelujah!” on the end of that paragraph. What an incredible statement. What an awesome reality!
Need a second chance? You’ve come to the right place. Second chances are the specialty of our Savior!

(Source: https://maxlucado.com/the-gospel-of-second-chances/)

I’m so thankful that we serve a God of second chances! There is nothing that you have ever said or done that Jesus can’t forgive. There is no sin too big, and no transgression too scandalous for the blood of Christ to purify.

That’s why the Psalmist wrote: “He does not punish us for all our sins; he does not deal harshly with us, as we deserve. For his unfailing love toward those who fear him is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth. He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west.” (Psalm 103:10-12 NLT)

Do you need a second chance?

In Christ,
Jonathan Anderson