And I learned some lessons.
Last week one night, while my wife and I were going to bed, we heard a really loud and thundering sound. Both of us were startled and jolted by the noise. At first, I thought part of the roof had fallen down. But immediately I knew what the sound was.
The shaky slotted angle shelf of books wasn't steady enough and we knew that it was leaning to one side. It was a good shelf we had purchased only recently, so there was no problem with the shelf as such. But I had done a mistake while putting it together which made the shelf unstable. It was a simple matter of refitting the shelves into the right slots and tightening the screws, which I was too lazy to do. The only thing I did about it, was to reassure myself by telling me there was no way it could fall. Well, that didn't work for too long, as on that night the whole bookshelf tilted and just fell to one side of the room leaving hundreds of books on the floor.
Avoid a fall if you can.
In our daily lives, there are areas like my bookshelf, shaky, unsteady, leaning, about to fall, unsure, and not dependable. We know our prayer life is not right, or the way we read the Bible needs a check, or there are flaws in our character, a bad habit that needs to be given up or an attitude that's not right. We know that the repair might take some time, and a bit of effort, which might require us to slow down. We'll have to take feedback to do a course correction and sometimes take U-turns. But do it, before it's too late. David prays that God will help him to see the wicked ways in his heart, thoughts, and actions. (Psalm 139:23) David is not praying that prayer because he is sure about being right in all his ways, but because he knows there are things that need attention and correction. He really wants God to find his faults so that he can course-correct.
Take a check and do it by keeping God's Word as the standard. Take time off for the same if necessary. Whatever it is, avoid the big fall at any cost - because it will be loud, disturbing, and create a huge mess.
If you fell, here's some good news.
Sadly, I didn't care enough to keep a check on my bookshelf. But thankfully, though it fell, it didn't fall on anyone's head, nor did it break after the fall. But I had the chance to remove every shelf and refix it in the right slots and tighten it - one by one. It took me time and a good amount of work. But now, you are safe around my bookshelf. It's steady and strong. That's how we want to be if we face falls or experience the consequence of our mistakes. Yes, the best thing was to avoid the whole fall. But, now instead of crying over the spilled milk, take up the chance to learn, rebuild, correct yourself, ask for forgiveness, and make the changes needed.
God doesn't kick us out when we ask for forgiveness. Though He doesn't want us to make unnecessary mistakes and falls, He knows we will and when we do, He wants us to run back to Him. David cried out in repentance saying, "I have sinned against the Lord." (2 Samuel 12:13) when Nathan the prophet confronted him after David committed adultery and murder. God forgave David. Why? Because God knew His Son would pay the price for David's sins. There were consequences He faced for his sins, but that didn't keep him from receiving forgiveness and changing his ways.
God wants to forgive us too and make us more like His Son Jesus(Ephesians 5:1). He is willing to give us the second chances and new beginnings that we need for the same. He will sanctify us by His Word(John 17:17). The Spirit of God will guide and instruct us(John 14:26). So even when we fall, God is the One to whom we need to turn. Don't let the devil tell you otherwise.
And for the learnings I received, I am glad the bookshelf fell without a lot of consequences.
Comments