"David was conscience-stricken after he had counted the fighting men, and he said to the LORD, "I have sinned greatly in what I have done. Now, LORD, I beg you, take away the guilt of your servant. I have done a very foolish thing.'" 2 Samuel 24:10 NIV
On December 7, Thomas Callaway, 44, was running the Savannah Bridge Run when he made a mistake that would cost him dearly; he swatted the rear end of WSAV-TV reporter Alex Bozarjian as he was passing by. The incident was caught on live camera and Thomas was arrested and charged soon after. And although Thomas apologized on public television and said that he was deeply sorry for his actions and regretted his lapse in judgement, this husband, father, and church youth leader had no choice but to plead guilty to a misdemeanor charge of sexual battery on Tuesday and was sentenced to a one year probation and ordered to pay a $1000 fine.
And you know, everyone of us has had a lapse in judgement and done something we wish we wouldn't have. That’s just a fact. And although God will forgive us of our sins and take away our guilt when we repent and turn from them, we are not always freed from the consequences of those sins; something David certainly came to realize after he pridefully took a census of the fighting men when there was no need to do so. The Bible tells us that he "was conscience-stricken" afterwards and begged the Lord to "take away the guilt" he had. And while the Lord indeed forgave David for his lapse in judgment, as He graciously does to us as well, David was left to deal with the consequences of it.
So if you find yourself saying Lord, "I have done a very foolish thing" today, take heart in knowing that God will forgive you if you confess and repent. That, unfortunately, won't relieve you of the consequences of your sin but it will free you from the guilt that sin always causes and give you hope for the future.
Heavenly Father, thank You for the Word that shows us that even a man after your own heart can easily fall into sin. Help us to follow the example of David when we sin that we might immediately repent but graciously accept the consequences that follow--all the while praising You. It's in your precious name we pray Jesus. Amen.
Happy Running!!!
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