Do you enjoy shopping with coupons? I always have, especially back in the day when we made very little money and needed to stretch it as far as we could. I was quite adept at clipping coupons from the Sunday paper and hunting for the best sales. Even now, although money isn’t quite as tight, I’m still always looking for a way to get the most bang for a buck.

When you submit a store coupon along with your payment for the purchase of the item listed, the store gives up a portion of their profit to “buy back” or “redeem” the discount your coupon provides. In the case of a store coupon, that’s the end of the process. 

Manufacturer coupons are “bought back” by a store in a similar fashion. They, in turn, submit your coupon, along with all the others they have collected for that manufacturer, for “redemption” by the manufacturer. The manufacturer “redeems” or “buys back” the coupons by reimbursing the store for the total face value of the coupons.

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A coupon isn’t required in order to “redeem” yourself, though the concept is pretty much the same. When one has behaved poorly in the past or demonstrated a subpar performance, that previous situation can be “bought back” through redoing something in a more successful manner or seeking forgiveness and following up with transformed behavior.

Maybe the local basketball team didn’t live up to their potential in their inaugural game of the season, but they were able to redeem their performance by outscoring their opponents 2-1 in the rematch the next week. They made up for their initial lackluster showing by stepping up their game.

Or perhaps someone was rude to the cashier at the coffee shop for getting their order wrong. They can potentially “redeem” the situation through a heartfelt apology and extra tip during their next visit. Through sincerity, backed up by action that has value, the negative situation can be counteracted, and positivity restored.

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In religious terminology, redemption focuses on releasing a bond, paying a ransom, rendering the cost for ownership, setting free from captivity or slavery, or acting as a family member who buys back something or someone that was lost or sold.

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After eight months of having both of our 20-something twins back at home, one of them for just over a year, they recently moved into an apartment in a city a couple of hours away.

When each of them had left home for separate colleges over four years ago, I was so ready for them to be gone. There was anger that I was processing, due to their desires and choices not lining up with my picture of what their lives should look like. Faith deconstruction was just beginning in earnest. I was learning to find my identity in something other than being a mom and a person of faith.

Saying goodbye as they leave this time, I look back on the unexpected bonus time we got to have with each of them over the past year, and I sense that lost time has been redeemed. We were able to buy back time that had been forfeited through unresolved pain and conflict. A bond of mistrust was replaced by a mutual commitment to relationship. Actions born out of wounded pride and unfulfilled expectations were negated by new actions grown in humility and fresh perspective.

What a great gift is the redemption of wasted time and damaged relationships! Our past can now be viewed more gently and compassionately when it’s viewed through today’s lens of healing and restoration.

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