I messed up. can god still use me?

Something that I have continually struggled with within my own heart has been the battle over condemnation. I grew up in the church and had a great upbringing. However, even with a great environment, I still managed to fail miserably in many areas of my life. So, when God called my family and me to pastor a church, my first thought was, “I am not qualified.” I realized how flawed I was, especially when introduced to new pressures of ministry.

I am sure most of us have felt the same way from time to time. We all struggle with the thought of “How can God use me after I have messed up so much?” The encouraging news is this: God uses flawed people for His flawless work.

Most of us know the story of Joseph; we find it in the book of Genesis, starting in chapter 37. But have you heard the story of Judah? Right after Scripture introduces us to this amazing person named Joseph, it immediately goes into chapter 38 and tells us the story of Judah. Now I can’t type out every detail in the story, but you should read it yourself. So I will try to break it down quickly.

Judah is one of Josephs’s brothers. It was Judah who came up with the idea to sell Joseph into slavery. Then in chapter 38, we are let into the story of Judah. In this chapter, we see a crazy drama! Judah marries a Canaanite (that’s not good) and has a family (three boys). His oldest son marries a woman named “Tamar.” But his sons are so evil in the sight of the Lord that He kills them. Yup, they die. Long story short, Judah ends up sleeping with His daughter-in-law Tamar. How crazy is that? I am telling you, you need to read the story for yourself. But out of all this, Judah and Tamar end up having twins, and they are a part of the genealogy of Jesus Christ (Matthew chapter 1).

So God took this broken person named Judah and used him and Tamar in the genealogy of Jesus. Tamar and Judah were far from perfect, they have a very flawed story, yet God chose them for something unique because God uses flawed people for His flawless work.

Your story may not be as crazy as Judah’s, but I am sure you have made mistakes. We all have! But our mistakes won’t stop God from using us. When we come to Jesus, we are made right in the eyes of God. Our sins are washed away, and we become a new creation. That means that we are no longer defined by our mistakes, our failures, or our flaws.

So, yes, we all have made mistakes. We have all messed up from time to time, but God can still use your life. Do not let guilt or condemnation convince you that you are now canceled. Instead, remember, God uses flawed people for His flawless work.