Coffee Stains

You meant evil against me; but God meant it for good.

Genesis 50:20

J. I. Packer wrote, “Our God is a God who not merely restores but also takes up our mistakes and follies into his plan for us and brings good out of them.”

Many people have trouble forgiving themselves because the scars of sin remain in their lives and relationships. But don’t underestimate God’s grace. Joseph’s brothers chastised themselves for their past sin, but Joseph reassured them that the Lord had turned even their vicious betrayal and evil deeds into something good.

Remember the old story of the artist and the coffee? A painter was drinking coffee in a French café. One of his companions became enraged and threw his coffee against the wall, creating an ugly stain. Taking his paints, the artist created a beautiful mural that incorporated the stains into the scene.

It’s true that sin leaves stains on the walls of our lives, but when we love God, even these things can be worked together for good in His glorious plan.

Only the Lord can turn our spiritual scars into trophies of His grace. If you’ve been forgiven by Him, you can learn to forgive yourself and to thank Him for turning your spiritual scars into something good.

He most graciously overrules our folly, and causes the influences of our self-chosen circumstances to work for our spiritual benefit.

C. H. MACKINTOSH