Consequences

For some reason in today's time people seem to think that they can act however they please. They live how they want to live, taking what they want without thought of who they are hurting. Sometimes even knowing the pain they will cause but not caring. Then they blame other people for their actions. I guess inside it makes it easier for them to live with their own mistakes and themselves.

Maybe some people don't have the capability to look into their own lives and actually see the truth?

It seems to me like they are able to look back and lump their mistakes into one big happening. They forget to look back at their situation day by day. Action by action. Every mistake has a consequence. You never know when the time to pay the piper will come. Some mistakes catch up to you very quickly. Other's you pay for over and over again. And some even still will haunt you years later.

The flesh gets angry when this happens. We try to defend ourselves. What I've learned at the sweet age of 41 is to embrace those consequences no matter how hard they may be. I know the wrong decisions I've made and even though it's over for me, and I'm truly sorry for what I done it's not over for those I hurt. They are still battling the pain, trying to cope with it as it pops up and haunts them in their own lives.

Sometimes we feel that we deserve more than we really do. Should everything in our life be like it was before? I mean honestly should it?

When mistakes are so big they break up marriages, break hearts, confuse families, and abandon children people surely cannot continue to blame the family that isn't ready to forgive yet. Those that are still hurting.

We all know what the word of God says about forgiveness but you know what? Each person comes to that in their own time. You can't be so self righteous as to believe for one moment that an "I'm sorry" will just fix everything and turn things around to like they were before. Not everyone gets to have their cake and eat it too.

You also can't justify the wrong you did. Period. There is a right way and a wrong to handle things. When you knowingly choose the wrong path the consequences will be harder. I think Christianity is a huge cause of this sin and repent behavior. People are almost taught that no matter how bad they mess up whether by mistake or choice there are no consequences they only have to say "I'm sorry" or "forgive me".

In writing this I'm speaking from some experience. I'm not pointing fingers. I've made some big mistakes of my own, which is why I can say what I'm saying. I see the pain I've caused in many people although in one person especially. I see how the mistake I made years ago still effects them. They aren't purposely trying to punish me, they are simply trying to heal from the pain I knowingly caused. To recover from the choices I made. Forgiveness isn't a one time deal. It's something you often have to do daily, for the same person, for the very same reason, every day, because our flesh is bold and strong.

I'm thankful that our Lord loves us unconditionally. I'm thankful He doesn't remember once we've confessed our sins and sorrow for making the decisions we did. We also have to forgive ourselves. Yet even still, we never have the right to be angry at the ones we hurt. Those are the consequences of our mistakes. We have to learn to deal with and live with those. I'm sorry doesn't fix things. If we could figure out how to teach that lesson to our growing children we might see a new generation.