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Fix Mistakes While you Can

MISTAKES NOT TO BE TOLERATED ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD ?

By Bill Ellis
Special to ASSIST News Service

SCOTT DEPOT, WV (ANS) -- “To err is human, to forgive, divine” are the words of Alexander Pope, the celebrated poet of England who lived between 1688 and 1744. Perhaps the reason for their popularity is that humans are inclined to mistakes and always desire forgiveness.

To err is to make mistakes, miscalculate, misjudge, misstep, misunderstand, to blunder, and to go astray. When a person is mistaken he is wrong, incorrect, inaccurate, erroneous, confused, and misinformed. It can all add up to colossal failure.

We live in a day when tolerance is often praised as one of the great virtues of life and it may well be in certain circumstances. Not all tolerance, however, is to be praised. Tolerance is often linked with open-mindedness, broad-mindedness, liberal-mindedness, goodwill, indulgence and lack of prejudice.

There are mistakes that cannot be tolerated. They should never happen. They must not be repeated. Think about all the mistakes you know about. Should they be tolerated and allowed to be repeated?

Medical mistakes will happen, but they must not become commonplace or acceptable. I read in the newspapers about people dying or being maimed for life because of mistakes in the hospital or at the doctor’s office. Great care is now being taken to insure that the correct medications are taken at the proper time.

Engineering mistakes result in fallen bridges and collapsed buildings. Death may come to hundreds and injuries to thousands. Somebody knew better, but the best thinking did not prevail.

When starting out on a cross-country flight on a stormy night have you ever prayed that you would be blessed with a broadminded and indulgent pilot who was full of goodwill and leniency? Not me. I have flown in many parts of the world in stormy weather that bounced the plane around like it was a toy. When that happened I was always hoping the pilot was a tough-minded, narrow-minded, and intelligent man who would not tolerate any kind of mistake.

Surgical mistakes can result in death, paralysis, amputations, and loss of a clear mental capacity. Twice in my life I have undergone very serious and critical surgery. One tiny mistake or the slightest slip of the surgeon’s scalpel would bring death. I had trusted my life to the hands of Dr. Jamal Khan and Dr. David Ratliff. I wanted them to be intolerant of any possible mistake.

Educational mistakes are a plague to the nation. We have made too many of them in the last 30 years. Throughout the world mistakes are being paraded as the cure-all for the ills that devastate educational systems and nations.

Social mistakes can rip a strong nation into shreds in a relatively short period of time. Moral issues are often cast in a social context to avoid facing up to their sinfulness as described in the Holy Bible and the books of other religions.

Spiritual mistakes have been shoved off the front burners of life and stashed in the warming oven of tolerance. It’s as though some evil power has given to mankind the privilege of believing whatever he chooses and the assurance that whatever he chooses will somehow be sufficient to transport his immortal soul to some kind of heaven when his life is over.

Christians believe in a Savior who said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6 HCSB). Jesus Christ, whom his followers trust for their salvation, also said, “Broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it” and then added, “Narrow the road that leads to life and only a few find it” (Matthew 7:13-14 NIV).

Is one religion as good as another? Are their multiple saviors and heavens? All spiritual decisions need to be free of mistakes.

Friday, June 3, 2005