Beyond Labels: How God Rewrites Our Stories

Getting caught up in the world’s view of failure is so easy. If you make a mistake, you’re wearing a permanent label. If you fall short, the world will never let you forget it. This mentality is all around us, whether in how we judge ourselves or others. It’s this unforgiving view where mistakes are met with punishment, and there is no room for second chances. But thank goodness, that’s not how God sees us.

How God Sees Us

God’s Word repeatedly reminds us that while our missteps have consequences, He never sees us through the lens of failure. The world might hold us to a standard of perfection, but God meets us with grace and mercy, over and over again. When we make mistakes, God doesn’t abandon us or label us unworthy. He offers us the same mercy that He shows others. His love for us is steadfast, and His mercies are new every morning, no matter what.

The Gift of Grace

In this broken world, we’re constantly faced with moments when people let us down or when we mess up. It’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking we, or others, don’t deserve grace. But grace isn’t something we earn. It’s a gift. When we start meeting others with the same grace that God extends to us, we begin to see people, even in their brokenness, as loved and redeemable. And that includes ourselves.

I will never forget a ministry season when my husband Andy and I were a small part of seeing grace extended to people who deeply needed it. There is an incredible ministry in Birmingham called Lifeline Children’s Services. They do so much amazing work that I don’t have space to describe it. But one of the programs they have is a biblically-based, discipleship-driven parenting class for parents who have had their children removed by child services. For parents who want to work to regain custody of their children, part of the work they must do is to take court-ordered parenting classes. Lifeline has lobbied the state to allow them to provide courses that teach these parents a biblically-based parenting model. The incredible thing is that it’s driven by the local church, where members can surround these parents with love and care as they strive to get their lives back on track.

Andy and I spent 8 weeks teaching a group of 6 mothers who had all had their children taken from them. The decisions and lifestyle many of these women were leading had consequences for them and their children. And to a person, each of them owned their mistakes and worked incredibly hard to overcome them. These women were in the hardest moment of their lives, trying to rebuild, prove they were trustworthy again, and right the wrongs they had committed.

Every week, we listened to their stories. And every week, we heard echoes of the same heartbreaking belief:

“I don’t deserve to be their mom.”

“I’m just a failure.”

“I’m not worth fighting for.”

But those weren’t the final words. Most of the women did the work. Most regained custody of their children and set their lives back on the right path. In at least two cases, these women embraced the support and love our church members offered them in the midst of their struggles.

One woman was baptized in our church and now attends with her children. Her actions had consequences, but the grace and love that were extended to her changed her and her children’s lives.

You see, the words these women were saying about themselves were born out of a fallen world where we’re told we can’t overcome our mistakes. But the thing about those words is that they weren’t true, not in light of the Gospel.

Scripture tells a different story to us, a story of grace that reaches low and mercy that never runs out. When we place our faith in Jesus, we aren’t defined by what we’ve done or what’s been done to us. We are defined by who He is and what He has done on our behalf. God doesn’t see us through a lens of failure, but through the lens of the cross. He sees us through Jesus. Titus 3:5 says, “He saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy.” Mercy was the motivating factor for God’s rescue of us. And the beautiful thing is that God meets us with grace, not just once. Over and over again.

Lamentations 3:22-23 says, “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” Let these familiar verses sink in. God’s love never ceases. Ever. It doesn’t stop when we hurt people or are hurt by people.

There is no end to His mercy. It doesn’t end when we let someone down, and it doesn’t end when someone lets us down. His faithfulness never lessens. It doesn’t lessen when we wrong someone, and it doesn’t lessen when someone wrongs us.

I do not know what happened to each mom in that class. But they experienced grace and love in the face of the crippling consequences of their missteps. For at least a few of them, it seemed to make all the difference in their redemption and reconciliation.

God Gives You a New Name

You may be walking through life carrying a label someone else gave you. Or one you gave yourself. But God gives you a new name. You may see someone in your life who’s fallen short, who you think doesn’t deserve a second chance. But grace wasn’t meant to be deserved. It was meant to be given. So the next time you’re tempted to write someone off, or write yourself off, listen closer. The world says, “Make them pay.” God says, “I’ve already paid on their behalf.”

His mercy is new every morning. Even for you. Even for them.

3 Ways to Apply God’s Truth Today:

What is a label you’ve been carrying, maybe one the world gave you or one you’ve given yourself, that God wants to replace with His truth?

Who needs to be reminded that grace is real and mercy is for them, not just for everyone else? How can you tell them this truth?

What’s one practical way you can extend grace this week to someone who doesn’t “deserve” it?

Adapted from Listen Closer: Believing God’s Truth Over the World’s Lies by Brendt Blanks. Copyright © 2025. Used by permission of Iron Hill Press.  All rights reserved.