Sometimes you just can’t do anything else but laugh at yourself and give thanks.  You read scriptures that you know were written especially for you, the book you bought impulsively is full of lessons that apply so perfectly to your current situation that you wonder if the author has been reading your mail…  You share your excitement over the amazing things God is doing in your life with a friend you bump into while in town.

And then —

You get a little too comfortable, a little too confident… Someone says something slightly irritating or something doesn’t go quite the way you think it should and rather than responding, you react. In a way that doesn’t testify to any of the above — there’s no way you could be reading your Bible, applying those lessons, or be the recipient of amazing things from God.  And the split-second after your reaction is over, you are filled with shame when you realize just how far you have to go in this journey with Him.

Thankfully, He is the God of first, second, third, and fourth chances.  And so you get up from the place you’ve cratered in shame, shake yourself off, and ask Him to once again hold your hand and help you to be the person you so desperately want to be:  a true follower of Christ.

Thankfully, He never says “no” to those who seek His forgiveness with sincerity and repentance.