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Mar 03, 2024 06:00am

Don’t Slash The Other Three

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I am, and always have been, a planner. My daughter, Trina, is just like me. So when one of us says we’re going to do something, the other one always asks, “So what’s the plan?” because we know there is one!
That trait is good in many ways, but bad in others, especially when it demands perfection. For instance, when I deviate from my plan — especially when it comes to my sin of choice (overeating) and my constant struggle with “the battle of the bulge” — I feel like an absolute failure, give up completely and want to eat everything in sight.

But I was watching the show “Beyond Weight Loss” the other day, and Fitness Pioneer Larry North said something that really struck home with me and shed a new light on my problem:
“Say you’re driving down the road and everything is great… then you hear the flapping of a flat tire. What is your reaction? Do you get out of the car, grab a knife and slash the other three good tires? Or do you open the trunk of the car, pull out the jack, replace the bad tire and continue on your journey?” Of course, the answer is what my kids would call “a no-brainer” — you acknowledge what is broken, fix what is broken and continue on your journey!

“So why,” he continued, “when you stray from your eating plan, do you throw up your hands, quit and head for the refrigerator? Isn’t that the same as slashing the three good tires? Just acknowledge what you’ve done (get out of the car), immediately get back on the plan (fix it) and continue on your eating journey. As long as you haven’t slashed the other three good tires, you’re doing fine!”

Why in the world do I beat myself up when I stray in this or any other area of my life? Why don’t I just acknowledge it (to myself), fix it (ask for God’s forgiveness and help) and get back on the plan?
Satan would love for us to slash the other three tires when we mess up. He’s fond of saying, “You have really blown it this time, God will never forgive you for that and your testimony is in the trash, so you might as well just follow me and do whatever you want to do!” That is a lie, straight out of Hell!
When we accept Christ as our Savior, ask Him to forgive us of our sins and come into our hearts, He does just that — and we become a child of God for all eternity.

Do Christians still sin? Oh yes, way more than we want to. Does He forgive us if we ask Him to? Every time, regardless of the sin. Will He still punish us for our sins? Would you punish your child if they deliberately disobeyed you, and would you do it because you love that child just as they are, but you love them too much to let them stay that way? It’s the same with God. Sin doesn’t break our position with God (we’re still His child), but it can break our fellowship with Him until we confess it and ask for His forgiveness.

The key is not to slash the other three good tires when we mess up. We just need to acknowledge our sin, confess and ask God for forgiveness, then continue on our journey, doing our best to walk with Him and not to commit that sin again.

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness”(I John 1:8–9).