Wednesday, February 04, 2009

Learning from our Mistakes


From the time we are born to the time that we die, we will makes mistakes. If you think about it, more often than not, the way we learn is by making mistakes. I remember when I was first learning to play the saxophone. My poor parents had to listen to me make mistake after mistake. Being that a saxophone is made out of metal, it is loud, but it also has a reed, so it is squeaky. Each time I would make a mistake, it would remind me of how I needed to improve and what I needed to work on.
The challenge with making mistakes, is to not let them get us frustrated. This is a real possibility in life. We can either let our mistakes cause us to get frustrated (so much so that sometimes we might want to quit), or they can lead us to determinedly work harder and get better, stronger, or more capable.
Too often we don't learn from our mistakes, only to make those same mistakes again. It would be nice if we had a big mauve eraser that could erase our mistakes away. But this is not reality. The better route is to learn from our mistakes. to ask the important questions that will help us grow and progress so that we might know what God wants us to know and live as God calls us to live!
When I would practice my saxophone, once I made a mistake, I would stop, go back to that place, and work it over slowly again and again until I got it right. This can be a good lesson for life. When the mistake is made, go over it again and again until you figure out how to do it right. If you were unforgiving, then go to the person and forgive them. If you struggle to forgive them, pray about it day after day until God puts forgiveness in your heart for them.
Don't let your mistakes get the best of you. Let them be your teacher. In this way you will become all that God wants you to be.