“I Have Made Mistakes” – The Oh Hellos

The theologically rich storytelling of The Oh Hellos makes them one of my favorite bands! “I Have Made Mistakes” is a struggle of Saint Paul’s lament “What I do, I do not understand. For I do not do what I want, but I do what I hate” (Romans 7:15). How many times have we sinned and promised to God to “sin no more and avoid the near occasion of sin” just to fall prey to it all over again? I know that “I have made mistakes, I continue to make them” and “The promises I’ve made, I continue to break them.”

The chorus brings out a significantly theological point – God allows evil so that Good may be drawn out of it. I learn a great deal more from my mistakes than my successes… As they put it, “the sun, it does not cause us to grow. It is the rain that will strengthen your soul.” This is something I need to constantly remind myself of. This is especially true as an outsider watching a loved one make poor decisions. Think about the parable of the prodigal son. The prodigal son’s father loved his son so much, that he would allow him to make his own poor decisions to learn. Would allow him to learn. Similarly, God loves us so much that he will let us not choose his path!

We often think that our mistakes/vices alienate us. But this is a trick of the evil one. “We have lived in fear, and our fear has betrayed us… Because we are not alone in the dark with our demons.” I used to keep my sins hidden, because I thought I could conquer them alone. But as Ecclesiastes 4:12 reads “Where one alone may be overcome, two together can resist. A three-ply cord is not easily broken.” We certainly need to put the effort in, but we are not alone, we have God and he always sends us others to accompany us in the journey.

As I write this – I am aware of a specific grave mistake that I have made. I am so embarrassed that I wonder “how can I face you now?” Not Just God, but the person I have hurt. The person who “we both know how badly I have let you down.” And so I pray for strength and courage!

Lyrics

I have made mistakes, I continue to make them
The promises I’ve made, I continue to break them
And all the doubts I’ve faced, I continue to face them
But nothing is a waste if you learn from it

And the sun, it does not cause us to grow
It is the rain that will strengthen your soul
And it will make you whole

We have lived in fear, and our fear has betrayed us
But we will overcome the apathy that has made us
Because we are not alone in the dark with our demons
And we have made mistakes
But we’ve learned from them

And the sun, it does not cause us to grow
It is the rain that will strengthen your soul
And it will make you whole

And oh my heart, how can I face you now?
When we both know how badly I have let you down
And I am afraid of all that I’ve built
Fading away

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Skip to content