I am running later today due to this nagging cold bug that seems to be taking me on like a prize fighter. It can't knock me out but it has me on the ropes. The cup of Door County Chocolate Raspberry Truffle Coffee sitting next to me is helping to unscramble my brains.
Earlier this morning while letting our dog Gibbs out I noticed some frost on the ground. I snapped this picture to show what is left of Rene's flower garden. The garden that was pictured on my blogs this spring and summer was once lush, green and full of color. It fed bees, butterflies and hummingbirds for a few months. Now it is ready to be cut, some will be dried and taken in. There is still a few hardy plants that are surviving but both of us know that the next frost is going to end the season. You can see in the photo that the flowers are starting to show brown leaves. Rene sure enjoyed her garden this year and soon it will be on to planning the next year's color palette of posies.
Lord willing, there will be another garden. But it won't be the same one as this year. This garden will hopefully have some of the perennials come back. But all of the annuals will be gone forever. The time to enjoy them is coming to an end.
My point for the day is the word apology. It is never too late to try and apologize for any wrong doing on your part. But waiting to apologize just runs the risk on the timing going sour. Before long the other party might have grown bitter and the frost of anger might have destroyed all life of reconciliation between the two parties. There is the chance that an apology could be accepted but the relationship is not the same. Like the garden. Some of the same flowers might return, but the originals are gone and it is never the same.
When I was a teen I liked to push my body to the limits and see if I could jump across ditches, small creeks or from ledge to ledge. It was a gamble and a few times after falling short I did some minor damage to my body. I bare the scars of the short landings and I am reminded of the gambles I took that placed them there.
Do you really want to gamble on scarred relationships by waiting to apologize? Sometimes we think the apology is "understood to be there" because it just should be. "They know I didn't mean it" should never be a gamble you take. Here is what the Bible has to say.
Matthew 5:23-24 "Therefore if you are presenting your offering at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your offering there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your offering.
Notice that before we go to God with anything we should go and try to make things right with the offended party. Not all apologies are accepted but the main thing is that you sincerely attempted to ask for forgiveness. Not "hey I am sorry", but "I ask that you would please forgive me."So before the garden of apology time freezes over make the move to get right. You will feel better about the situation and God expects that you go and apologize.
Have a great day.
Marty
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