Permission?

A friend of mine asked his neighbor if he could borrow his power washer, even though he had already used it. The guy who owned the washer asked him if he was asking could he or was it alright that he already had? My friend admitted that he had already used it and was that OK? The man with the washer said, "Well, what would your mother say?" I jumped in that point and said, "Forgiveness is easier to get than permission." It totally took him by surprise. As the conversation continued he asked me 3 times to repeat what I had said, stating that he could remember the forgiveness part, but kept forgetting the permission part. When he said it, I felt God say to me that is exactly the way we all are in our relationship with Him. We remember the forgiveness part, and tend to forget the permission part.
PJ