Dear Jesus, I failed again
Ezra 9
Do you have those days when nothing seems to go the right way? When you decide to do something and it seems that no matter how hard you try, you do the wrong thing? Say the wrong thing? Turn the wrong way?
Maybe this is what Ezra was feeling as he reflected back on the decisions made by him and his people in this book.
And now, O our God, what can we say after all of this? For once again we have abandoned your commands!
Ezra 9:10 NLT
As we read further in this chapter, Ezra is not feeling sure of the the outcome. His written words do not give the feeling of confidence of God’s grace. The last words of this chapter say, “…though in such a condition none of us can stand in your presence.” Ezra 9:15 (NLT)
It feels a bit hopeless reading the failures of the Israelites again and again. I feel the same when I look at my own life - I feel a bit hopeless observing my failures again and again. But, is hope dependent on my mistakes and my successes? Is faith dependent on mistakes and my successes? Is love dependent on my mistakes and my successes? I do read other verses in the Bible that I think answer these questions.
Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? (As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.” No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us. And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love.
Romans 8:35-38 NLT
If it is true that not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love, then I cannot live in the fear of my mistakes. Jesus will always be just. He will always show me the better way to live and He will direct me towards the better decisions to make. I will continue to make mistakes because there is no perfection in this life. I will also continue to ask for forgiveness from Jesus and I will continue to believe that I will not be separated from Him.
Pray with me.
Dear Jesus, I am full of indecision, wrong decisions, misdirection. I am also full of the desire to live a way that pleases You. I desire to love others as You have loved me. I desire to give to others as You have given to me. I desire to forgive others as You have forgiven me. Jesus, help me to grow my faith in You. Help me to grow my faith in You. Jesus, I want to give all of me to You. I want to give you my relationships, my work, my day to day decisions. Direct all of it, Jesus. Guide me in the best path on this earth so that I can be a part of guiding others toward You. Thank You for Your daily forgiveness, Your daily mercy, Your daily grace. Thank you for growing my faith daily. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Amen! Praise God for His daily forgiveness and His mercies, for they are new every morning (v9) “Though we are slaves, our God has not forsaken us in our bondage. He has shown us kindness”