Bad Landings: How to Move On After a Mistake

When was the last time you made a mistake? 

I can think of three or four I made in the last hour, though they’re not ones I will remember for years to come. But I can think of five or ten right now that I made years ago and can’t ever seem to forget.

Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw is quoted as saying “A life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable, but more useful than a life spent doing nothing.” Nice sentiment, right?

Until you find yourself standing in the aftermath created by one such blunder. 

How do you move on after a mistake? How do you work through the guilt, shame, and/or embarrassment of screwing up big time? What if your error affected someone else in a wholly negative way? What about those little errors that no one else knows about but you can’t seem to forgive yourself for?

Pause. Take a breath. Roll your shoulders, stretch your neck, whatever you need to do to release tension. The following will help you move on after a mistake, one step at a time.

Run Toward God, Not Away

“God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.”

Psalm 46:1

Prayer is the first thing a Christian should turn to in all situations, so why not now, after you’ve messed up? Or are you under the impression that you’re an embarrassment to God, and maybe he doesn’t want to hear from you until you’ve cleaned up your mess? 

I think Adam and Eve felt that way. According to Genesis 3:7, after they ate the fruit, “the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.”

Don’t kid yourself. This wasn’t about self-consciousness over body image. This was about shame for what they’d done and awareness of their lost innocence. Why else would they have hidden only one verse later when they heard God walking in the garden?

If your line of thinking in any way resembles Adam and Eve’s, you need to ponder Romans 8:34:

“Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.” 

There are no conditions attached to this truth. Jesus has your back, whether your mistake occurred from honest oversight or deliberate ignorance, whether it happened in public or private. You can approach God’s throne with confidence and find mercy and grace to help you in your time of need (Hebrews 4:16).

Don’t let your mistakes separate you from God.

Related: Jesus Saved You From Sin, Death, Hell—And God

Don’t Sweep It Under the Rug

In this age of ultra-plush carpets and robotic vacuums, sometimes I wonder if anyone remembers what this saying means. If you have wood floors like I do, sometimes it’s tempting to sweep the junk under the rug and ignore it instead of rolling the rug, sweeping the dirt into a dustpan, and tossing it in the garbage. It’s definitely less work, but the dirt is still there.

Don’t sweep your mistakes “under the rug.” If beating yourself up over an error is common practice, equally common is attempting to downplay the problem or pass the blame elsewhere.

“I didn’t know!”

“Hey, at least I didn’t do what Anna did.”

“Maybe if you hadn’t____________, then I wouldn’t have ____________.”

“It’s not that big a deal. I won’t worry about it.”

Equally as bad as cowering in shame is strutting around in self-righteousness. That’s what your old self would’ve done. Your new self, however—the one redeemed by Jesus—is “created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness” (Ephesians 4:20-24). Your righteousness comes through him and only him, not by anything you did or didn’t do. (See my post Justification by Faith Explained: A Simple High School Analogy.)

You can own your mistakes like a true Christian in two ways:

1) Repent When Repentance is needed

“Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord.”

Acts 3:19

To repent means to “feel or express sincere regret or remorse about one’s wrongdoing or sin.” All mistakes are the result of our sinful nature and the imperfect world we live in, but that’s no excuse for shirking personal responsibility. Confess your sins and oversights, then earnestly make changes so you don’t keep making the same mistake.

And never overlook the power of a good, old-fashioned “I’m sorry” when others have been affected by your mistakes.

2) Clean Up Your Mess

Maybe it was an accident. You didn’t mean to hurt your friend or embarrass your mother or rear-end someone with your brother’s car. Even so, it’s still your responsibility to rectify the situation to the best of your ability. 

• Don’t expect your parents to do it for you.
• Don’t “hit and run”—walk away and pretend to know nothing about it.
• Own your mistakes, apologize, make repairs—whatever it takes to smooth over the consequences of your error.

Related – No Excuses: A Challenge to Own Your Problems

Be Amazed by God’s Amazing Grace

“If you, Lord, kept a record of sins, Lord, who could stand? But with you there is forgiveness, so that we can, with reverence, serve you.”

Psalm 130:3-4

The entire Bible is all about God’s perfect, unconditional love. There’s nothing I can say here that wasn’t already said better in scripture, so pick it up and be reminded of how much he loves you, despite your many sins, flaws, and mistakes.

I do, however, want to take this moment to remind you that your mistakes do not affect your salvation. If you truly believe in Jesus as your savior, you are still saved. There is nothing you can do to be “more” saved. Keep pulling the weeds of sin so they do not choke out your faith and keep living to glorify God, but rest assured in your salvation.

Related – How to Overcome Habitual Sin: Why Persistence Matters

View the Situation With a Growth Mindset

“The greatest lessons come from the greatest mistakes. As long as we allow ourselves to learn from them.”

Anonymous

That’s not a scripture quote, but there is wisdom in it. You learn more from things you did wrong than from always doing everything right. So what can you learn from your mistake? How can you grow, spiritually or otherwise? How can you use your error to help someone else?

Mistakes are the risks you take for living, but better to live and grow than to sit idly and miss out on the joy of serving God with your life.

Speaking of serving God…

Consider Ways to Use Your Talents to Serve Instead of Sin

“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters.”

Colossians 3:23

Whenever I hear of another online security breach, I can’t help but wonder who’s behind it and what awesome things they could do if they used their cyber talents for good instead of destruction. 

What about you? What are you good at? What do you enjoy doing? You are a unique creation of God, and he never gives you a skill so you can sin. It’s always so you can serve him. Look for ways to do just that.

Related: Let Your Life Be a Glimpse of God’s Glory

Move On After a Mistake—Because That’s What Life Does

Seriously. The world isn’t going to end because you walked out of the bathroom with your fly down or your skirt tucked into your underwear. As far as I know, no one has ever died of embarrassment (as much as you might want to). Don’t waste time dwelling on your mistakes or beating yourself up for your supposed stupidity. Sometimes you just have to let it go and move on after a mistake with only the comfort of knowing you’ve been redeemed by Jesus’ blood.

As author Maxwell Maltz once said, “You make mistakes, mistakes don’t make you.” And as God says in Isaiah 41:10: “Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

There is no greater comeback than that.

More For Christian Teens: Moving on After Sin

If guilt and shame from past sins still cling to you like a coating of ultra-sticky tar, check out my post Epic Faith: How to Deal With Guilt Over Lost Virginity—not just about moving forward from sexual sin, but any sin that makes you question your worth.