"I had a genuine encounter with God years ago, but I squandered it and lost my shot."
How it sounds in your head: I remember that moment—that camp, that service, that season when God was so real. I had it. I was on fire. And I let it slip away. I had my chance at the abundant life and blew it. That was my window, and it closed.
"So I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, the crawling locust, the consuming locust, and the chewing locust."
-- Joel 2:25Source: Enemy strategy to make you live in nostalgia for past grace instead of receiving present grace, as if God's move is one-time only.
The contrast between the intensity of that past encounter and the dryness of now creates the narrative that you had a limited-time offer and missed it. The vividness of that memory makes current distance feel permanent.
Samson squandered his anointing through compromise, pride, and lust, ending up blind and enslaved. When he cried out ONE MORE TIME, God restored his strength and he killed more enemies in his death than in his entire life.
I REFUSE the lie that I had one shot and missed it. IT IS WRITTEN that God restores the years the locusts ate—not leaves you in the aftermath of wasted seasons. Samson squandered his entire calling and God still answered his final prayer with greater power than before. The prodigal wasted his entire inheritance and was restored in 15 minutes. IT IS WRITTEN in Psalm 103:5 that He renews my youth like the eagle's—not once, but as a pattern of His nature. I am Abraham's seed, heir of the BARAK blessing that protected and prospered even after repeated failures. What I had then is available NOW because God's nature doesn't change.
The Father isn't mourning your wasted years with disappointment—He's preparing to restore them with abundance that makes up for lost time. That past encounter wasn't your peak; it was your introduction to a relationship that has no expiration date.