Jan 30
3:39 AM
Our mistakes and failure of the past do not have to define us. We can choose to be who God says we are. Every one of us has something in our past that is less than admirable. We have all been branded, either through reputation or conscience, with some haunting memory of our old sins.
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
2 Corinthians 5:17
Two brothers were convicted of stealing sheep many years ago in England. In accordance with the punishment of those days, they were branded in the forehead with the letters “ST” for “sheep thief”. One brother, unable to bear the stigma, fled to a foreign country where he died full of bitterness and was buried in a forgotten grave. The other brother chose not to run away. He said, “I can’t get away from the fact that I once stole sheep, but I will remain here and make the best of it. I’ll change my way of living, do what’s right and try to get back the respect of my neighbors, as well as my own self-respect.”
The years passed, and he gradually established a reputation for his integrity and respectability, his honesty and sense of self-worth. Then one day, a stranger was in town, and he happened to notice this old man with the letters “ST” branded on his forehead. He asked one of the local people what that meant. After pondering for a while, the villager said, “It all happened so long ago that I can’t remember the particulars. But I really think the letters are an abbreviation for the word ‘Saint’.”
Our mistakes and failure of the past do not have to define us. We can choose to be who God says we are. Every one of us has something in our past that is less than admirable. We have all been branded, either through reputation or conscience, with some haunting memory of our old sins. Either we can let shame and guilt set in and do the devastating work of making us feel their weight for years to come, or we can choose to see ourselves as God sees us and walk in the forgiveness and freedom that only comes through the cross of Jesus Christ.
No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord. (Isaiah 54: 17)
By Raymond Farr
Published on Jan 30 @ 3:39 AM EDT
