Only Lessons

I am regularly astonished at God’s ability to turn ugly mistakes into something beautiful in
the end. God has more than enough mercy for every mistake we’ll ever make. A part of
teaching is giving others a safe place they can make mistakes and not be rejected. Seeing
people’s failures isn’t a gift, anyone can do that. Seeing people’s potential in the midst of
their failures, that is a gift.
In life, things happen around us, and things happen to us. The only thing that truly matters
is our choice of how we react to it and what we make of it. Learn, adapt and choose to
make the best of each experience.
This story is about a famous research scientist who had made several very important
medical breakthroughs. He was interviewed and asked why he thought he was so much
more creative than the average person. What set him so far apart from others?
He responded that, in his opinion, it all came from an experience with his mother that
occurred when he was about two years old. He had been trying to remove a bottle of milk
from the refrigerator when he lost his grip on the slippery bottle and it fell, spilling all over
the kitchen floor—a veritable sea of milk!
When his mother came into the kitchen, instead of yelling at him, giving him a lecture, or
punishing him, she said, “Robert, what a great and wonderful mess you have made! I
have rarely seen such a huge puddle of milk. Well, the damage has already been done.
Would you like to get down and play in the milk a few minutes before we clean it up?”
Indeed, he did. After a few minutes, his mother said, “You know, Robert, whenever you
make a mess like this, eventually you have to clean it up and restore everything to its
proper order. So, how would you like to do that? We could use a sponge, a towel, or a
mop. Which do you prefer?” He chose the sponge and they cleaned up the spilled milk.
His mother then said, “You know, what we have here is a failed experiment in how to
effectively carry a big milk bottle with two tiny hands. Let’s go out in the back yard and fill
the bottle with water and see if you can discover a way to carry it without dropping it.” The
little boy learned that if he grasped the bottle at the top near the lip with both hands, he
could carry it without dropping it. What a wonderful lesson!
This renowned scientist then remarked that it was at that moment that he knew he didn’t
need to be afraid to make mistakes. Instead, he learned that mistakes were just
opportunities for learning something new, which is, after all, what scientific experiments
are all about. Even if the experiment “doesn’t work,” we usually learn something valuable
from it. So remember, there are no mistakes, only lessons.
What a beautiful way to teach children not to fear about mistakes. When adversity knocks
on your door, how do you respond? We all know Thomas Alva Edison failed thousands of
time before he made a workable light bulb. Treating mistakes as our teachers and learning
from them is the best thing we can do.
Think of yourself as the carpenter. Think about your life as a house. Each day you
hammer a nail, place a board, or erect a wall. Build wisely. It is the only life you will ever
build. Even if you live it for only one day more, that day deserves to be lived graciously
and with dignity. Life is a do-it-yourself project. Who could say it more clearly? Your life
today is the result of your attitudes and choices in the past. Your life tomorrow will be the
result of the attitudes and choices you make today.
Blessings, Ben