That's Crazy—No, That's GodSample

You Are Not Your Mistakes

For most of my life, I believed I was the sum of my mistakes. I wore every failure, every regret, like a badge. When I looked in the mirror, I didn’t see a man—I saw a convict, a failure, a disappointment. That’s what happens when the world defines you by what you’ve done instead of who you are becoming.

But then Jesus stepped in.

When I surrendered my life to Christ, I didn’t just get a new direction—I got a new identity. Second Corinthians 5:17 says, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.” Not a fixed-up version of the old me—a brand new creation. The past didn’t just get buried; it got erased. Psalm 103:12 says, God has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west. That’s not just forgiveness. That’s freedom.

I used to think I had to clean myself up to come to God. But He showed me that transformation doesn’t happen before surrender—it happens because of it. He took my brokenness and called me beloved. He took my rap sheet and gave me righteousness. He took my shame and gave me a story.

Isaiah 43:18–19 reminds us to forget the former things and see that God is doing a new thing. I didn’t know what my future would look like, but I knew I couldn’t let my past keep me locked up. God wasn’t asking for perfection; He was inviting me to trust Him with the mess.

You are not your mistakes. You are who God says you are: redeemed, chosen, forgiven, and free. Don’t let the enemy convince you otherwise.

Reflection Questions:

• What lies have I believed about who I am?
• How does God’s Word redefine my identity?

Prayer:

Jesus, thank You for giving me a new identity. Help me stop living under the weight of shame and step into the freedom of who You say I am. Remind me daily that I am not my past—I am Your child, made new. Amen.