A Beautiful Story of Redemption: When Love Calls You Back

Today’s post is gonna be a short one… I hope. We’re talking about redemption and restoration—two words that sound lovely until you have to live them out.

Let me start with a confession:

For the longest time, my personal motto in life was simple—“Keep it pushing.”

If a friendship ended, if a relationship collapsed, if I walked away from something—I wasn’t going back. Why? Because I always gave my best. I left it all on the table. So once I made peace with the situation, I became like steel—firm, unmoved, untouchable. My decision was final.

And then God pulled up…He checked me. Hard.

He showed me that my “keep it pushing” mentality wasn’t maturity or strength —it was pride.

Ouch.

Imagine my face when I realized my whole life motto was wrapped in pride. He showed me that my motto was built more on my terms than His plan. It was about my peace, my boundaries, my effort, not His plan or His heart for restoration. It wasn’t about surrender or obedience—it was about self-protection. I thought I was guarding my peace… but I was actually blocking His purpose in some situations.

Onesimus & Philemon – A Redemption Tale

Now, let’s make this real. There’s a little book tucked in the New Testament called Philemon. Tiny, easy to skip—but y’all, the depth in these verses?

The first time I read it, I was doing Bible study with someone, and we had very different takes. (Let’s just say it was a spicy conversation. 😂) But recently, God took me back to it with fresh eyes. And I saw something beautiful: A journey of love!

This book is actually a love story. A story of grace. A story of redemption.

It goes like this (Phil:1):

Paul, writes a letter to a man named Philemon, a believer who loves the Lord. Philemon had a bondservant (aka slave) named Onesimus who had run away—something that, in those days, was a huge offense.

But here’s the twist:

Onesimus ends up in prison with Paul. And through Paul, he encounters Jesus. He becomes a believer. A brother in Christ. Paul even calls him “my son.”

Now, Paul’s writing to Philemon asking him to take Onesimus back—but not as a slave. As a brother.

He doesn’t just appeal to duty or forgiveness as a command. He goes deeper. Paul is like: “Don’t just forgive him because you’re supposed to… forgive him out of love.”

That’s powerful!

Don’t just forgive because it’s right.

Forgive because of love.

Let that marinate.

Paul makes it even deeper—he says, “If Onesimus owes you anything, charge it to me. I’ll pay it back.”

Doesn’t that sound like Jesus?

He stands in the gap. He takes the weight, and absorb the debt.

Forgive because OF LOVE

Why My “Keep It Pushing” Motto Was Flawed

Sometimes, yes—God will lead you to forgive and keep moving. But other times, His will is to restore what was broken.

That was the part I didn’t want to hear.

I had to face the truth: My stubborn motto didn’t leave room for God to restore, amend, or redeem the relationships He wanted to. I had made myself the author of every goodbye instead of letting Him write the final chapter.

Redemption requires humility, not just closure.

I had to become okay with going back—not to everything, but to the people and places God Himself is calling me back to.

And when I go back, I can’t just bring tolerance—I have to bring love.

What If God’s Goal Is Restoration? Love Ain’t Easy… But It’s Powerful

Let’s get real: Love is hard. And it’s not always about moving forward into something new. Sometimes love says, “Go back. Let Me finish what I started.”Sometimes it looks like forgiveness and swallowing your pride.

Okay.

If God is nudging you to restore a relationship or friendship you gave up on, but pride is in the driver’s seat—pull over.

Because if you go your own way and ignore God’s tug… trust me, your plan will crumble. That’s not punishment. That’s what happens when we plant in disobedience. You don’t want to reap the fruit of stubbornness when He’s offering sweet restoration.

The hard truth: sometimes the very person you need to make peace with is tied to your destiny. Saying “no” to reconciliation might be justifiable, but it could actually be you saying “no” to God’s plan.

Sometimes, going back doesn’t mean going backward—it means obedience. You could forfeit something divine just because pride or pain is doing the talking.

Reach Out! Every redemption story starts with someone who said “yes” to love again.

Charge It to You

Let me leave you with this:

If you feel like something or someone is too broken to be repaired—look again.

Redemption is the Father’s specialty.

He takes what we call “over” and writes a new beginning.

And just like Paul told Philemon…

“Whatever they owe you, charge it to Me.”

Paul stood in the gap for Onesimus, Christ stands in the gap for the people who’ve hurt us.

He’s not asking us to ignore the pain. He’s asking us to release it—in love. I don’t know who this is for today, but if God’s been whispering,

“Go back. Make it right. Restore it.”

Don’t fight Him.

• Ask for grace.

• Ask for courage.

• Ask for His heart.

Maybe this blog is your wake-up call.

Because there’s nothing more beautiful than watching God redeem what looked broken beyond repair.

I’m here for every redemption story.

Let God write your story!

🎶 Music Time!

Today’s pick: “Greatest Love” by CalledOut Music — because His love truly is the greatest! 💖

And a personal fave: “I Will Dance” by Nathaniel Bassey & Jumoke Oshoboke — a stunning love song to our King.