"For God works all things for good to those who love Him and are called according to His purpose." -Romans 8:28
Have you ever gotten yourself into a mess? I sure have. Sometimes things don't turn out quite like you plan. Or perhaps you make a mistake or maybe even do something intentionally, knowing full well it will bring about a catastrophe. But what can we do after the mess has occurred? How can we pick up the pieces and deal with the brokenness we find in front of us?
Perhaps you were caught doing drugs or cheating on a test. Maybe you were caught lying or stealing, or got involved in a compromising situation. Perhaps it was a little more subtle. Maybe you didn't do what you felt God wanted you to do. Whatever the case, getting into a mess is messy.
But once we've discovered the consequences of our actions, known or unknown to others, then what do we do?
The first step is to repent. Even if the mess was caused by something we were initially unaware was wrong, we need to repent and renounce our actions to become pure before God by saying, "God, I'm sorry. What I did was wrong. Please forgive me." Even if you feel the situation is more than you can possibly bear, ask God if He will help you turn it around. We have to trust that in spite of our human frailties, He has the power to turn everything around, for good.
Have you seen something good come out of your mess? Everybody makes mistakes - it doesn't matter who you are. But the key is taking those mistakes and learning from them. Often these lessons in life are the best jewels we could hope to find. And we may even discover something else works out in spite of our mess.
"Everything works out for good, to those who love the Lord, and are called according to His purpose." -Romans 8:28
If there is any scripture that I could claim as my own, I think it would be Romans 8:28. There have been so many things in my life that should have gone better, but then went sour, many by my own doing. But God is such a faithful God. He took the bad things in my life and turned them into good. Isn't that awesome? A God who turns bad things into good - He's a God who has the ability to perform miracles, like turning water into wine.
In the New Testament, Jesus was at a wedding at Capernum. They must have had some great parties back then, because this wedding was to last for three days! The "wedding planner", as we'll call him, realized he was going to run out of wine. Jesus was called in to help. But up to this point, Jesus had not worked any miracles. Nevertheless, his mother exhorted Him to help. She believed in Him, that He was the Messiah, and she knew that He would perform miracles.
Jesus' mother said, "Do whatever He tells you to do." Jesus instructed the servants to fill barrels with water. It must have been a scene back then, filling these big barrels with water all the way from the well. But finally, all of them were filled. And do you know what happened? The water was turned into the most delicious wine the people had ever tasted.
Today it is the same with us. We are the barrels of water that get turned into wine. In the Old Testament water was a symbol of life, and wine was a symbol of joy. When we have faith in God, God is able to transform our lives - transform our lives from ordinary to extraordinary - even joy!
Have you given your life to God? Perhaps you believe, but you've never given Him your life. He does more with our lives than we can ever fathom. And we receive joy to boot. Ask Him to take control of your life and do incredible things with it. You will not regret it if you do.
