I Was Wrong.

“I. WAS. WRONG.”

This blog post is straight to the point. It’s about 3 simple words that can drastically change the course of your life if they are practiced genuinely from the heart. Those words are…

“I WAS WRONG.” Here’s why:

Makes you more RELATIONAL

Whether a person is an introvert, extrovert, outgoing, anti-social, or whatever else one fills in the blank to describe a person’s personality, you and I were created for community. We were created to deeply benefit from relationships with God and others. God is relational by very essence and nature, so when he created us in His image, the need to depend upon relationships as human beings is part of the way we are wired. Of course, we can all agree that relationships are difficult, tempting us to distance and disconnect ourselves from others or to be selective and cynical toward others. But if that’s the case, we should aim to change that about ourselves as much as possible. The reality is that for many people relationships are the cause of extreme pain and wounds throughout their lives. That’s why the encouragement from this post is to learn to express these simple words as often as possible and necessary, “I WAS WRONG.” This can change so much about the outcome of your relationships, and it needs to be a part of how we function when we look in the mirror and others.

Makes you more AUTHENTIC

For example, one of the best practices I continue to grow in with my kids is to tell them as often as necessary that “I was wrong.” Now, it’s easy to write about it, but in the heat of the moment, admitting I was wrong can be extremely hard for me on an emotional level. However, I’ve learned that the people closest to me get the real AUTHENTIC ME when they know I’m not always right or always have to get my way.

This is important, because people will pick up on our hypocrisies and will hold them against us in different ways when we don’t learn to consider when we may be wrong.

This creates wedges in our connection with those we love, only to produce more division in our relationships.

Makes you more APPROACHABLE

Therefore, we want to make sure we are approachable with others. We may have a lot to offer. We may deeply love others. But when we are not vulnerable to admit and express when we are wrong, we affect the flow of how others view us. That then produces consequences that will affect so many other areas of our lives. However,

when I let down my guard through the public acknowledgment of my shortcomings, I simply become more welcoming and inviting, letting others in.

That blesses me and the atmosphere around me. That will also open the door to expressing follow up statements like, “I’m sorry”, “I’m working on this area”, “I’m still growing”, etc. And all this will simply create the peace and freedom we all long for in our relationships.

To summarize, let’s remember these last final thoughts. We get to admit we are wrong, because all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). Being wrong is an inevitable part of all of our lives, not just before God, but also before others. Therefore, why avoid it? Why sweep things under the rug? Why deflect or ignore it? You’re only prolonging and deepening issues between yourself and others. Instead, the next time you realize there is tension in a relationship, break through that tension by being vulnerable and seeking to admit and confess that you were wrong. It’ll change your life and open doors that you thought would never be open again. The result of it will be PEACE and FREEDOM for your soul.