In an earlier blog I wrote about canoeing across the lake with a girl we called Romance when I was about 12 years old. We failed to realize that the wind was coming up. We could not get back across the lake against the wind until a boat came and towed us home. When Romance and I paddled across the lake we were thoroughly enjoying the experience, but we neglected to recognize the danger. All we needed to do was look back and see how far we had gone from home, look down and realize how weak and inexperienced we were and look out so see the dangers around us. But even that wasn’t enough to get us home. We had to look up and accept the rescue.
People find all kinds of creative ways to explain away sin. But, if we are truly followers of Jesus Christ, believers who have been redeemed by his grace, then we need to stop making excuses for sin. We need to look back, remembering the pain and consequences of sin in our lives and in the lives of those around us. We then need to look down, recognizing, acknowledging and taking full responsibility for the offensiveness of our sin. When we allow ourselves to be broken over our own sinfulness we are ready for grace. Brokenness is the road to renewal. We can then look out, recognizing the dangers of sin around us. Because of that we are ready to look up to the grace of God whereby God promises that, “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it” (1Cor 10:13). God has a way of turning brokenness into beauty, ashes into hope, and failure into victory. Look back, look down, look out and then look up and rest in God’s grace.
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