✨ 3 Strikes You’re Out…But God Says Otherwise

God Is Faithful and Just to Forgive You

1 John 1:9

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Romans 6:1–4

What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound?

By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?

Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death?

We were buried therefore with Him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.

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3 Strikes You’re Out… But God Says Otherwise

We’ve all heard that famous baseball phrase:

“Three strikes — you’re OUT!”

Meaning:

• You blew it.

• You messed up.

• You failed too many times.

• You’re disqualified.

• No second chances. No mercy. No redemption.

And sometimes life makes us feel exactly like that.

People will count you out after one mistake…

write you off after two…

and completely discard you after three.

Family will do it.

Friends will do it.

Church folks will do it.

Society will DEFINITELY do it.

And sometimes, we do it to ourselves.

We look at our sin, our failures, our patterns, our past…

and we tell ourselves:

“I’m out. God can’t use me now.”

“I messed up too many times.”

“I struck out.”

But here’s the good news:

God does not play by man’s rules.

He doesn’t operate in three strikes.

He doesn’t bench you when you fall.

He doesn’t throw you out of the game.

Instead, God leans in with grace and says

“Get back up — you’re NOT out. I still choose you.”

Where people see failure, God sees future.

Where people see disqualification, God sees restoration.

Where the world says, “You’re done,” God says,

“I’m not finished with you yet.”

So this message is for anyone who has ever felt:

• disqualified

• ashamed

• counted out

• or convinced that God gave up on them

Baby, pull up a seat — God has something to say,

and trust me… it’s NOTHING like what the world told you.

✝️

A Believer’s Heart to Please God

As believers, we sincerely desire to please the Lord with all our hearts.

We try. We aim high.

But we don’t always get everything perfect.

We may strive for perfection, but we fail — sometimes unintentionally, sometimes intentionally.

But the good news is:

God is faithful and just to forgive us… IF we repent and turn from our sin.

Sin is sin — intentional or unintentional.

And yes, repentance is required either way.

We are living in a time where temptation is everywhere — circling like hyenas, showing up in every form imaginable. There is nothing new under the sun. Sin only repeats itself in fresh packaging.

Our flesh wants to yield.

But the Spirit wants us to stand.

And God has given us the POWER to resist what tries to beset us.

Let’s be honest — we don’t always yield to the Spirit.

Sometimes we lean to the flesh, and yes… we regret it.

But when we truly repent, God promises:

“I am faithful and just to forgive.”

Our job?

**Repent. Truly repent.

Turn from sin.

Turn our hearts back to God.**

But here’s the problem:

Our flesh wants to continue in “that thing.”

Whatever that thing is.

God says, No.

If we continue in sin, we have not truly repented.

Why do we do this?

Because we think God will continue forgiving the same sin without true repentance.

But Scripture says:

“Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound?

God forbid!”

When we keep returning to sin, it’s like:

• A dog returning to its vomit

• Crucifying the Son of God again

• Stepping out from under the blood

• Walking in the flesh instead of the Spirit

Sin is sin — and there are no excuses before a holy God.

The Bible commands us to mortify (kill) the deeds of the flesh.

Without holiness, no man shall see the Lord.

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Sin Separates Us From God

Isaiah 59:2

Your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He will not hear.

What a horrible thought!

Not only does sin separate us from God…

but it blocks our prayers.

My God from Glory!

We NEED God —

and we NEED Him to hear us.

So what must we do?

REPENT.

Turn.

Return.

Come back to God — immediately and consistently.

Because the message of this blog is clear:

**3 strikes you’re out — but NOT with God.

He wants your heart to return to Him.**

If we truly repent of our sins,

God WILL forgive us.

✍️

Biblical Words for Sin (Found Throughout Scripture)

Here are sin-terms the Bible actually uses:

1. Sin – to miss the mark (Genesis 4:7, Romans 3:23)

2. Trespass – crossing God’s boundaries (Matt. 6:14–15)

3. Transgression – deliberate rebellion (Psalm 51:1)

4. Iniquity – moral crookedness (Isaiah 53:6)

5. Unrighteousness – living contrary to God (1 John 1:9)

6. Wickedness – harmful intentions (Proverbs 6:12)

7. Disobedience – refusing God’s commands (Romans 5:19)

8. Lawlessness – rejecting God’s law (1 John 3:4)

9. Vanity – meaningless pursuits (Ecclesiastes 1:2)

10. Evil – anything opposite of God’s goodness

11. Ungodliness – living without regard for God

12. Faults – human failures (James 5:16)

13. Backsliding – turning away from God (Jeremiah 3:22)

14. Hardness of heart – resisting God (Hebrews 3:8)

15. Dead works – actions without faith (Hebrews 6:1)

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BUT GOD Says Otherwise… Scriptures of Mercy & Grace

These verses reveal God’s heart to restore, not reject:

• Lamentations 3:22–23 — His mercies are new every morning

• Micah 7:18–19 — He casts our sins into the sea

• Psalm 103:10–12 — He does not treat us as our sins deserve

• Romans 5:20 — Where sin abounded, grace MUCH MORE abounded

• Proverbs 24:16 — The righteous fall seven times and rise again

• 1 John 1:9 — He forgives AND cleanses

• Isaiah 1:18 — Sins as scarlet become white as snow

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Closing

So let me leave you with this thought:

People may keep score…

but God does not.

People may count your strikes…

but God counts your potential.

People may judge your past…

but God sees the purpose still breathing inside of you.

Man says, “You’re out.”

But God says, “You’re still in the game.”

Man says, “You’ve fallen too many times.”

But God says, “The righteous fall seven times and get back up.”

Man says, “You’re disqualified.”

But God says, “My mercy qualifies you.”

Man says, “You’ve messed up too much.”

But God says, “My grace is greater.”

God is not intimidated by your mistakes.

He’s not shocked by your failures.

He’s not surprised by your past.

He already factored ALL of that in

— and still chose you.

So today, lift your head.

Dust yourself off.

Step back up to the plate.

Grip that bat of faith and say:

“Lord, I’m ready.”

Because with God…

• You NEVER run out of chances.

• You NEVER exhaust His mercy.

• You NEVER get thrown out of His grace.

This isn’t baseball —

this is Kingdom.

And in God’s Kingdom:

**You are never out…

never done…

never too far gone…

and never beyond His reach.**

Your story isn’t over.

Your purpose isn’t canceled.

Your calling isn’t erased.

God says otherwise —

and what He says stands forever.

✍️

Author Bio

Lauretta Scott is the heart and pen behind ipublishub-Book, a platform created to uplift, strengthen, and remind believers of God’s unfailing mercy. With a gift for turning everyday moments into powerful spiritual truths, Lauretta writes to those who feel overlooked, counted out, or weary in their faith. Her desire is to help readers rediscover grace, embrace God’s love, and stand firmly on His Word — no matter how many times they’ve fallen.