Glutton for Punishment?? Or Blessed??

Second Chances.

Are they a good thing?

Or are they a bad thing?

I have really been thinking about this a lot lately. I know that we all make stupid mistakes. And we all do things that we really wish we had never done. And we hope and we pray that the people that were involved or that might know what we did will soon forget, and will learn how to forgive us for what we have done. But so often we are not the person who made the mistake. So many times we are on the other end of the situation. We happened to witness someone do something unsavory, or silly. Or someone did something to us that was far less than kind. And the big question is, how do we react to that. Do we forgive them? Completely forgive them? And by completely forgive, I mean, if we were placed in the same situation again, would we give them a second chance and let them prove that they have grown and changed? Or do we choose to protect ourselves and keep a part of that with us. If the same situation came up again would we stop it right from the beginning and think that we are so smart. We learned from the situation and we will never let them hurt us again. It seems to me like this is a double edged sword. If we give them a second chance, we are opening ourselves up to be hurt again. But by not giving them a second chance, we are hurting ourselves by not letting them win back what ever was lost by their actions.
Call me crazy, or call me blessed, but I try super hard to fully forgive. And yes, some times it hurts. And some times it blows up in my face. And trust me, getting hurt by the same thing, for the second time, really hurts! But its a choice that I make. Why? Because I have made mistakes. I have been mean and rude and I have done things I am ashamed of. And I want to be able to prove that I have changed. Prove that I have risen above the old me and I have made myself into something better. And all to often, I am not given that chance. And I have had times where I have been forgiven. And because of it, I have great friends and amazing memories.

So.. by giving people second chances.. Are you Glutton for punishment?? Or are you opening yourself up to be blessed?