I was working on a construction job in the 90s, and I saw a man hit his finger with a hammer while driving a nail. It was a cold morning and it was the first swing of the day; BAM! He threw the hammer down, and took off running and screaming. He was a Christian man, but a word came out of his mouth that wasn't necessarily Christian, and we all heard it. He walked around all day with his head dropped apologizing for what he said.
Some might have said the same thing, and others just thought it, but there was no judgement from the crew, because we all knew he was a good man. At the end of the day he called us together and apologized again. One of the senior gentlemen on the crew asked him, why he kept apologizing, he said, "because you saw what happened", to which the older gentlemen replied, "yes we did, but we also saw all the good you've done".
I learned a lesson that day, never, ever, allow one moment to define you. Yes, God sees our mistakes, but He also sees the good we do. Christians often walk in defeat because of one swing of the hammer and we forget about all the times we hit the nail on the head.
Psalm 103:8
The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy.
Pastor Ken Smith
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