Relationships, Repentance, & Restoration

By Jeri Johnson

A The Kids & Me Contributor

Image for illustrative purposes only.

I recently spent several weeks with my adult son while he recuperated from surgery.  He was grateful for my presence; but after a time, he became irritable and testy.  At one point, he was downright disrespectful.         

His attitude surprised me; I knew that I didn’t raise him to act this way.  I later realized that he was not angry at me; rather, he was frustrated with the situation that he found himself in.  In addition to the pain and expense of the surgery, he was contending with difficulties in his marriage. He knew that once he recuperated, he would be moving out of the house. He would have the added expense of setting up and maintaining a separate residence.  He would also be spending less time with his children. He felt overwhelmed and he lashed out at the person closest to him: me.  His pride was further deflated when he had to turn to me for financial assistance.           

This situation produced a teachable moment, not just for my son, but for all of us as Christians. We all find ourselves in situations in which we feel overwhelmed and can see no way out.  Sometimes we complain to God by saying, “I don’t understand why I am going through this” or “Why don’t You intervene?”  We may not be verbally disrespectful, but our actions reflect our feelings when we don’t pray to Him or spend time studying the Scriptures. Then we are hesitant to approach Him when we find ourselves in situations that only He can resolve.                     

When we are wrong, we need to not only apologize to the person whom we have offended, but also to God Himself.  David said, “Against You, You only, have I sinned and done this evil in Your sight (Psalm 51:4). And we need to confess this to God in front of our children.  This teaches them that when they are disrespectful to their parents, friends, teachers, and others, then they are disrespectful to God. When they receive God’s forgiveness, then they feel comfortable coming to Him for anything. Hebrews 4:16 teaches us to come boldly to the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

In the same Psalm that David acknowledged his sin, he went on to ask God to restore to him the joy of God’s salvation (Psalm 51:12). David wanted God to restore their relationship to what it was before he sinned. This should be the objective when our children strain the relationship with us. This may not happen overnight and they may have to suffer the consequences of their actions. But God promises that if we confess our sin, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9).  David’s repentance not only restored his relationship with God, but the experience made David want to share the Gospel with others. He knew that after his restoration, he would teach transgressors their ways and sinners would be converted unto God (Psalm 51:13). And that, in essence, is the purpose of the Gospel.