NOVEMBER 9, 2017 ⎪A LEGACY REFLECTION

MERCY FOR THE FALLEN

BY MICKEEVA WALKER

It is no secret that we are imperfect people. Yet, it always seems like we constantly beat ourselves up when we make a mistake; as if mistakes are never supposed to happen. We tell ourselves that we have gone too far in our sins for God to accept us, and that there is no coming back from the fall. However, this mindset is only toxic, and it weighs us down. We never truly get to where God wants us to be because we tell ourselves that we cannot make it.
I can remember when I first started living for God and how these were the thoughts that I battled in my mind. God started to reveal to me that His love is not based on how good I have been, but rather, on how good He is; that completely changed everything for me. Now, when I fall in my walk with God, I tell myself, “God does not love your mistake, but He does not love you any less because of your mistake.”
Landon Gore, one of our speakers at Legacy 2017, said, "His arms were there before the mistake, and His arms are there after the mistake."
The conviction we feel after we fall is not meant to condemn us, but it is God reaching for us. The reality is that God knew we would fall, yet He created us anyway. You are not perfect, but He created you anyway. You fall, time and time again, but He created you anyway.

We read in the Bible countless stories of fallen people. One story that really speaks to me is the story of the woman caught in the act of adultery. Her accusers wanted nothing but to get rid of her, but Jesus had something else in mind. He said one of the most profound statements in the Bible, when he spoke to the crowd, saying, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her” (John 8:7).  Her accusers were forced to look within themselves, and knowing that they too were not perfect, they slipped away. "Jesus stood up and said to her, 'Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?' She said, 'No one, Lord.' And Jesus said, 'Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more' " (John 8:10-11).
I love this story because it reveals to me the mercy and love of God and how God continues to reach for us every time we fall. The Bible says, “For the righteous falls seven times and rises again, but the wicked stumble in times of calamity” (Proverbs 24:16).
Even when we fall, God’s arms are there to help us back up. We are not called to stay at the bottom. God has so much in store for our lives when we are willing to get back up. The devil tells us that we cannot rise again, and that we are too far out of reach. However, the Word says, “Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you” (James 4:8).
Your fall does not define you, but God does. You can place your trust and hope in Him. And just as He was there before the fall, He will be there after the fall.