Stolen Grace: A Memoir: How God Rescued Me from the Jaws and Claws of the United Methodist Church

If we look closely at the people God used in the Old Testament, we will notice that many of them failed God at some point. They messed up badly, and God still used them. Even in the New Testament, there are people who messed up, and God used them to build His kingdom and church.

God has used and will continue to use "messed-up people," and many such are found in the genealogy of Jesus and also referenced in Hebrews 11, who were broken and really messed up.

The Bible is filled with stories of people that have struggled, stumbled, and simply failed God.

God stopped Saul (Paul) on the road to Damascus, and his life would be changed and transformed forever. Paul easily became the greatest apostle of all time.

In scriptures, there are so many other persons whom God used, even though they were broken. People like Moses, David, Solomon, and Rahab show us how God is still willing to use us after we have messed up. No matter what broken state we're in, we are never beyond God's reach. We are never so far gone that God can't make us effective for His purposes. It is us as human beings who judge each other by our own personal standards and write people off as being unacceptable.

I messed up badly during my ministry, but I am convinced that God still has a purpose for me and wants to continue to use me in ministry. He has already been demonstrating this to me in a clear, strong, and meaningful way

When we are broken or feel that we have messed up, that is not the time to worry about what others may do or say since other humans can make us feel worse. Equally, it is not the time to give up and turn away from God. Rather, it is the time to draw nearer to God. That is when we should seek God all the more for direction, clarity, help, and strength. It's the time when we should, like David, ask God to create a clean heart and renew a steadfast spirit within us and restore us into the joy of His salvation.