A Second Chance | The Goodness of God (Part 9)
June 28, 2026
A God Who is compassionate and forgiving is naturally a God Who gives second chances.
People remember in detail where they were when a significant event occurred. I remember that I was pulling into the parking lot at work when I heard the first plane struck the Twin Towers on September 11, 2001. I remember which classroom I was sitting in when the space shuttle Challenger exploded in 1986. I also remember the street I was driving down when I told God I was done running my own life. I ran out of myself and was so overwhelmed that I had no hope. That was the moment when I told Him to take over the steering wheel of my life.
Instead of guilt and shame, I am delighted that God gave me a second chance. An opportunity to push the reset button. A few years later, I learned that He is a God of endless chances! And He does this because He is driven by His compassion. He gives me opportunity after opportunity to reset and start again. It reminded me of what Jesus said to Peter in Matthew 18.
21 Then Peter came to him and asked, “Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?”
22 “No, not seven times,” Jesus replied, “but seventy times seven!”
That is an abundance of forgiveness and endless opportunities to start again! Earlier in that same chapter, Jesus is talking about how God the Father sees us who have gone astray.
12 What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray and gets lost, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountain and go in search of the one that is lost? 13 And if it should be that he finds it, truly I say to you, he rejoices more over it than over the ninety-nine that did not get lost. 14 Just so it is not the will of My Father Who is in heaven that one of these little ones should be lost and perish.
No one perishes! That is a God of endless opportunities! Jesus demonstrated the heart of our good God in the account of the woman caught in adultery in John 8.
2 Early in the morning (at dawn), He came back into the temple [court], and the people came to Him in crowds. He sat down and was teaching them,
3 When the scribes and Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery. They made her stand in the middle of the court and put the case before Him.
4 Teacher, they said, This woman has been caught in the very act of adultery.
5 Now Moses in the Law commanded us that such [women—offenders] shall be stoned to death. But what do You say [to do with her—what is Your sentence]?
6 This they said to try (test) Him, hoping they might find a charge on which to accuse Him. But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger.
7 However, when they persisted with their question, He raised Himself up and said, Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.
8 Then He bent down and went on writing on the ground with His finger.
9 They listened to Him, and then they began going out, conscience-stricken, one by one, from the oldest down to the last one of them, till Jesus was left alone, with the woman standing there before Him in the center of the court.
10 When Jesus raised Himself up, He said to her, Woman, where are your accusers? Has no man condemned you?
11 She answered, No one, Lord! And Jesus said, I do not condemn you either. Go on your way and from now on sin no more. (AMPC)
This woman did not deserve a second chance, but Jesus gave it to her anyway. He did not accuse her, or shame her, or write out a ticket. He let her go with a warning. What relief she must have felt at that moment! Why did Jesus do that? Jesus tells us in John 5:19-20:
So Jesus explained, “I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself. He does only what he sees the Father doing. Whatever the Father does, the Son also does. 20 For the Father loves the Son and shows him everything he is doing. (NLT)
As God’s representative on the earth, Jesus treated this woman as the good God would.
1 John 1:9
If we [freely] admit that we have sinned and confess our sins, He is faithful and just (true to His own nature and promises) and will forgive our sins [dismiss our lawlessness] and [continuously] cleanse us from all unrighteousness [everything not in conformity to His will in purpose, thought, and action]. (AMPC)
To push reset, I need to humbly admit my sin or waywardness. Then, I trust Jesus salvation and God’s promised forgiveness. A God of second chances is a God that allows ‘do-overs.’ A ‘do-over’ is a new attempt or opportunity to do something after the previous attempt has been unsuccessful or unsatisfactory. If you want a do-over, God will give it to you. It starts with repentance. Then, God will forgive and forget. Micah 7:18-19 says:
Where is another God like you, who pardons the guilt of the remnant, overlooking the sins of his special people? You will not stay angry with your people forever, because you delight in showing unfailing love. 19 Once again you will have compassion on us. You will trample our sins under your feet and throw them into the depths of the ocean!
As the prophet Micah points out, God overlooks our sins because we (believers in Jesus) are His special people. When I pushed reset almost 30 years ago, that is when I started writing books, blogs, children’s skits, and bible studies. God did not just accept my repentance and forgive, He supercharged my spirit, making what seemed impossible a reality. If that is not a sign of a good God, I don’t know what is.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank you for every second chance you gave me. Thank you for the gift of repentance that resets my life. In the name of Jesus, I humbly ask you to show me where I have missed it and where You stand ready to forgive and move on. Purge me of the guilt and shame that my waywardness has brought into my life. I love You, Father, and I am ready to start again. Amen.