Don’t Let One Awkward Moment Stop You
Acts 20:24 — But my life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus—the work of telling others the Good News about the wonderful grace of God.
Can I tell you something about myself?
I have this little habit that I’m not particularly proud of.
Okay, fine. It’s probably a toxic trait.
If I’m trying to help somebody, and I genuinely think I’m doing a good thing, but then somebody comes along and says, “Oh, you’re actually not supposed to do that,” or “Yeah, no, that’s not how we do things”…
Well.
Awkward.
And my immediate response?
I’m never doing that again.
Anybody else?
Please tell me I’m not alone here.
Because there’s just something about thinking you’re being helpful, only to discover you’ve gotten it wrong, that makes you want to disappear into the nearest hole.
And maybe stay there for a while.
This actually happened to me recently.
I was trying to help. My intentions were good. I thought I was doing the right thing.
But then I found out I had missed the mark.
And almost immediately, that familiar thought showed up.
See? This is why you shouldn’t even try. You just make things worse.
But before I could settle into my little pity party, I felt the Lord challenging what was happening in my heart.
No. We’re not turning this into a belief system.
We’re not taking one uncomfortable moment and using it as proof that trying to help people is a bad idea.
We’re not deciding that because something didn’t go the way we hoped, we should never put ourselves out there again.
Because sometimes?
You just miss the mark.
That’s it.
You can have a good heart and still make a mistake.
You can genuinely want to serve someone and discover you went about it the wrong way.
You can step forward with the best intentions and still end up feeling embarrassed.
And none of those things automatically mean you should stop trying.
But isn’t it funny how quickly we can turn one experience into a whole story about ourselves?
One mistake becomes, I’m terrible at this.
One awkward conversation becomes, I should just keep my mouth shut.
One attempt to help that didn’t go as planned becomes, Maybe I should stop getting involved.
And before we know it, we’re sitting on the sidelines.
Not because God told us to stop.
But because we’re afraid of feeling embarrassed again.
That’s what made me think about something the apostle Paul said in Acts 20:24.
“But my life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus—the work of telling others the Good News about the wonderful grace of God.”
Now, Paul was facing challenges far greater than an awkward moment.
He knew that following Jesus and sharing the Gospel could bring suffering, opposition, and uncertainty.
But he had made up his mind about something.
He wasn’t going to let the difficulties along the way distract him from the work Jesus had given him.
His mission mattered more than his comfort.
And while my little embarrassing moment certainly doesn’t compare to what Paul faced, his words challenged me.
Because how often do we allow something uncomfortable to keep us from doing something meaningful?
How many times do we let the fear of getting it wrong become bigger than our desire to do what’s right?
Maybe you’ve experienced that, too.
You tried to encourage someone, but your words came out wrong.
You volunteered to help, but things didn’t go the way you expected.
You stepped out of your comfort zone to serve, and instead of feeling good about it, you walked away feeling foolish.
And now you’re hesitant to try again.
Can I encourage you?
Don’t let one awkward moment become the reason you stop showing up.
You don’t have to pretend you handled everything perfectly.
You don’t have to defend every decision you made.
And you certainly don’t have to keep doing something the wrong way just because your intentions were good.
Sometimes the most faithful thing you can do is admit you made a mistake.
Apologize if you need to.
Listen.
Learn.
Make an adjustment.
And then?
Keep going.
Because God’s grace isn’t just something we tell other people about.
It’s something we need to remember for ourselves, too.
We are going to make mistakes.
We’re going to misunderstand things.
We’re going to have moments when we wish we could rewind the last five minutes of our lives and try again.
But those moments don’t have to define us.
And they certainly don’t have to disqualify us from loving and serving others.
You know what I’ve been learning?
Embarrassment is a feeling. It doesn’t have to become a decision.
Just because something made you uncomfortable doesn’t mean you should never try again.
Just because you didn’t get it right the first time doesn’t mean God can’t use you the next time.
And just because you had one awkward moment doesn’t mean you have nothing valuable to offer.
There are still people who need encouragement.
There are still opportunities to show kindness.
There is still good work to be done.
And God is still able to work through imperfect people who are willing to keep showing up.
So today, if you’ve been holding back because of something that didn’t go the way you hoped, maybe it’s time to give yourself a little grace.
Take what you learned from the experience.
Leave behind the shame that doesn’t belong there.
And ask God for the courage to step forward again.
Because the goal was never to serve perfectly.
It’s to serve faithfully.
Don’t let one awkward moment turn into a lifetime of sitting on the sidelines.
Give yourself the grace to get it wrong, the humility to learn, and the courage to try again.
A MOMENT TO REFLECT
- Have you ever stopped doing something good because one experience left you feeling embarrassed or discouraged?
- Why is it so easy to turn one mistake into a negative belief about ourselves?
- What does Paul’s determination in Acts 20:24 teach you about remaining faithful when things become uncomfortable?
- Is there a past mistake you need to learn from without allowing it to define you?
- What opportunity to encourage, help, or serve someone might God be inviting you to reconsider?
QUESTION TO CARRY WITH YOU TODAY
Am I allowing one uncomfortable moment from my past to keep me from something good God may be calling me to do today?
