One of my favorite preacher jokes is the story of the Pastor who was invited to tea at the home of one his elderly parishioners. As she prepared tea, he helped himself to a bowl of peanuts on the table and eventually ate all that was left. As she returned with the tea he felt he should apologize for eating them all but she assured him it was alright since she had already licked the chocolate off them.

This reminds me that mistakes happen to the best of us. Humans inherently make mistakes; usually because we lack the information we need to make the right decisions. We think we do, but we don’t: Reality slaps us in the face yelling, “Aha! Got ya!” With the correct information we make very different decisions, resulting in very different outcomes.

Likewise we are sometimes compelled to make decisions based on the urgency and pressure of others. We still need to have correct information but we are forced to make a decision “even if it’s wrong.” In either case we can end up looking foolish and we want to avoid that if we can. Sooner or later we are going to make a mistake and face the consequences of our errors. So, “what do I do when I make a mistake?” It is simple; I admit it: “I made a mistake!” “I messed up!” The surest course to correcting mistakes and cleaning up our messes is by take ownership.

Now “how do I avoid making mistakes?” Personally, recognizing that I am fallible, I approach decisions with humility and openness to input from others. “When I was a boy I was asked to mow the lawn of a neighbor. He had an electric mower with a long extension cord, which had been cut and spliced several times. He told me “you are going to run over this cord, but don’t worry I’ll just splice it again.” But I didn’t cut it; I was careful, because I had been cautioned; mistake avoided! At other times we are just tossed into the pool and if you swim you live … Call it on the job training! Mistakes not avoided.

In Matthew chapter 14; Peter, a disciple of Jesus Christ, was with his companions in a boat on the lake when they see Jesus come walking to them on the water. They were frightened thinking him a ghost, but Jesus assured them it was he. So Peter said, “Lord if it is you, tell me to come to you on the water.” Jesus said “come” and Peter did, but became frightened when he saw the power of the wind and began to sink. In sinking he cried out, “Lord save me!” Jesus reaching out his hand, caught him and helped back into the boat. I wonder, “What was Peter’s mistake? That he got out of the boat, that he trusted Jesus? No, but that he did not trust Jesus enough! Jesus said, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?” You see, Peter took his eyes off Christ and saw the elements and began to sink. It was a lesson I am sure Peter never forgot.

Two types of people invite disaster. Those unable to go forward because they do not know enough to make a decision and fear getting it wrong. The other type are those who throw caution to the wind and bull forward without regard to the consequences.

The only remedy is a good dose of humility. Peter later wrote these words, “ … God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” “Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time. Casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.”

1 Peter 5:5-6, The need for me to know everything is minimized by his infinite understanding, his absolute power, and his ever present help. The temptation for me to go rogue and “do it my way!” is tempered by my desire to please him and let him get the glory.