SECOND CHANCE GOD

2 Chronicles 33:13 “And when he prayed to him, the Lord was moved by his entreaty and listened to his plea; so he brought him back to Jerusalem and to his kingdom.”

We like to think that success is based on one victory after another, but even in the sports world, we know that simply is not true. Hank Aaron, the man who broke Babe Ruth’s home run record, struck out more times than 99% of the players who make it to the major leagues. Yet we do not remember him for the strike outs, just the home runs. He was of the belief after each strike out, if I just get another chance, I’ll hit a home run.

Everybody who finds their way to Jesus Christ comes with the realization somewhere along the line, that they failed miserably in their relationship to God. They come to God, not with a bold list of demands, but in a humble spirit in need of a second chance. I do not fully understand where we got the image of God being an old angry man with a long beard ready to zap us from outer space for each error we make, but it did not come from the Bible.

Scripture informs us that our God is a “second chance God”. He took a murderer by the name of Moses, and turned him into a great national and spiritual leader. He took a liar and deceiver by the name of Jacob, and made him the cornerstone of a nation. He took an adulterer and murderer like David, and used him to write many of the Psalms to strengthen and encourage the people of God. He took a woman who had been married and divorced five times and was now living with a sixth man and turned her into the first evangelist to go into Samaria. He took some of us, knowing what we were, and turned us into to what we are becoming today.

Our scripture is a portion of the story of King Manasseh. He was an evil man that was full of pride. He had rejected God and his laws. But one day, God brought Manasseh face to face with reality. He found himself in prison at the hands of Assyria. At that point nothing that he had previously placed his trust him could help him. Not his riches, not his power, not his crown. His situation was hopeless, and he was helpless. You may know all too well how humbling difficult circumstances can be. It is in those moments that, like Manasseh, we have an opportunity to remember that God offers second chances.

A person whose life had been a complete moral and spiritual disaster, got a second chance from a second chance God and he spent the rest of his life attempting to lead his people back to God. You can never go back into the past and change what was said or what was done, but all of us have the opportunity in God to make a positive difference in what takes place from here on out. So what if you’ve blown it for the past two years, past twenty years, or past forty years. You don’t have to end up that way. Don’t buy into the silly notion that once we give our hearts to the Lord, we will not require a second chance from God. Do know without a doubt that God loves us and, in his great mercy, is willing and ready to give us the opportunity to get it right.?

If you find yourself off track and feel that you’re lost, remember God is a God of second chances. Let him redirect your path. Live in his forgiveness. Be free and spend the rest of your life being the person he created you to be.