It's Never Too Late To Do The Right Thing

This is a principle I heard some time ago – unfortunately, I do not remember who said it.

It’s so true – It’s never too late to do the right thing!

I have my fair share (probably more than my fair share) of things I wish I had not done – poor decisions, poor timing, poor comments, poor thoughts, poor actions. And, there usually comes that time when you realize that what you have said or done was not the right thing to say or do. The question is – How do I respond when I realize I’ve messed up?

Usually, I want to make it right – I want to fix it. Okay, then why, more often than not, do I NOT fix it?

I believe we deceive ourselves into thinking it’s too late to fix it. You know all of the clichés: The horse has left the barn; the water’s gone under the bridge…

But is that really true? I admit, the hurt cannot be erased, the consequences for poor decisions still must be dealt with, and it will take time to rebuild relationships…but is it ever too late to do the right thing?

Let, me dig a little deeper. Do we ever make it too late for someone else to correct what they have done to us?

Is there a point in our relationships with others where we would hold up the stop sign and say, “Sorry – it’s too late for you to make this right”?

What I realize is that as bad as I am in correcting my mistakes with others, I’m probably worse at drawing the line with others and saying – you’re too late.

I read recently that the only way we are able to maintain a perspective that allows others to come to us and find forgiveness and healing from us is when we keep in mind the ultimate forgiveness and healing we’ve received from God through Jesus Christ. Even with this relationship in my life, I sometimes find it a tough sell to allow others to “make it right” with me.

I guess what it boils down to is the reality that we will (probably more often than we like) find ourselves on both sides of this deal. Sometimes we need to go and make it right, and sometimes we need to allow others to make it right with us. If we remember that Golden Rule from pre-school – we’ll find our relationships will improve considerably. Sure, we’ll still blow it…and so will the guy or gal next to us…but I’m finding the more I practice this principle (from both sides) the better my relationships get and the LESS I need to practice this principle.