Big Little Sins

Why are we so determined to make Christianity a private club, only available to those we deem worthy?

We're quick to point out the sins of new believers without giving them a chance to allow the Holy Spirit to work in them. We judge them based on our own self-righteousness instead of allowing the Holy Spirit to lead us as to when and how to confront sin.

We judge those who sin differently from us, as though our sins are acceptable and theirs aren't.  The Bible clearly warns us that we're fooling ourselves if we think we don't sin.

Do we have so little faith in the Holy Spirit to work in the lives of Christians, especially those new to faith, that we think we have to step in and do His work for Him? There is a time and place to bring a fellow believer's sins to light, but we need to be sure we're working with Him and not relying on our own judgment.

Very few of us have those dramatic conversion stories--one day we're at our rock-bottom point, possibly addicted to drugs or committing violent crimes--and the next we meet Jesus and turn our lives around almost immediately. Most of us have a slow progression and spend the rest of our lives trying to pattern our lives after Jesus...often failing miserably.

Many people became Christians because they were raised in homes where they learned about Jesus. Of course we each have to make our own decision to follow Him, but it's much easier when we grow up around others who love Jesus and share His love with us. Others are raised in environments where they either never hear about Jesus, or sometimes they grow up learning to mock Him or with negative opinions of the church. They might be a little rougher around the edges after they accept Jesus as their Savior, but their faith is no less genuine. And if we let our own clean-cut lifestyles interfere with our love for them as they are, we could be guilty of hampering their walk with Jesus.

We all sin. We all have our own difficulties in life, often those that we keep hidden. There are Christians who deal with life's problems in unhealthy ways. But whether someone uses alcohol or drugs to cope, or eats loads of comfort food when life gets to be too much, it all points to weak faith. We all fall short when it comes to relying on God to get us through the tough times. 

Do we make ourselves available to those who are hurting, or do we just wait for them to make a poor choice... and then we pounce on them? If we were as quick to comfort those who are hurting as we are to criticize their sins, the world really would be a better place. If you weren't there in the midst of someone's pain, don't jump to be part of their prosecution.

Wouldn't it be wonderful if we all lived in perfect faith once we put our trust in Jesus? Even Moses acted out of anger and fear, and he had spoken with God face-to-face. The apostle Peter let fear cause him to deny knowing Jesus, and he had walked side-by-side with Him for three years.

We all fall short of God's glory. Our individual sins may look different, but they're still sins. 

"Just as I am." That's how Jesus calls us. And if we let Him, He'll make us into who He wants us to be.  He's patient with us. We should do the same with each other.

My Victory

Rude Awakenings

I thought I knew everything about human nature. Or that at least I was good at managing my expectations based on who I was dealing with and what I knew about that person.

But then reality came calling.

My oldest grand/daughter's father passed away recently. At first my heart broke for her. I hadn't seen her father in years, and I guess I was thinking mostly about what she was dealing with. He was hospitalized for a week, was comatose, and the outcome became obvious within a short time.

Due to the Covid-19 restrictions, only a couple of people were allowed to visit him in ICU until the decision to take him off life support had been made. Once we were allowed to visit, my husband and I went to the hospital to support our grand/daughter during what would be the most heart-wrenching day of her young life.

I wasn't prepared for the emotions that hit me upon entering that room.

Once upon a time, when our first grand/daughter was born, we allowed her parents to move into our house with her. I got to know her father a little better during this time. They weren't here long and I don't remember when or why they moved out. But it was clear from the beginning--we would always be family.

Eventually our grand/daughter came to live with us permanently. Her father would come visit as much as possible. He made mistakes in life--don't we all?--but his love for his daughter was obvious. As she got older and was able to drive, he no longer came here and I lost touch with him over the past several years. There was never a question that father and daughter loved each other immensely.

When my husband and I saw him in the hospital, we were both hit with such a sense of loss...for us, for our grand/daughter, and for her mother. Here was a young man who didn't have much opportunity in life, and it was now ending. (He had been raised by his grandparents, and I don't think he saw his parents...especially his mother...very often.)

Since the visitation restrictions had been somewhat lifted due to his dire condition, my grand/daughter and her mother had reached out to his parents and half-siblings so that they could have a chance to say goodbye.

Nobody came.

He passed away the next day. His daughter stayed by his side as long as possible, but because she had made the decision to donate his organs, she couldn't stay until the very end. But she was determined to be there for him as long as possible.

After my husband and grand/daughter had made the decisions regarding burial, etc., and since an actual funeral would have to wait until people were allowed to congregate again, the funeral home agreed to a family-only viewing. Again, my daughter and grand/daughter reached out to his family to let them know the details so they would have one last chance to see him.

His mother and two of his half-siblings showed up for the viewing. We introduced ourselves as we stood outside. The mom chatted a little in a very casual way. She never mentioned her son, at least not that I heard. The siblings never spoke a word to us. It was awkward to say the least.

My entire family went into the chapel to see him as soon as we were allowed. We were all brokenhearted and struggling to keep our composure.

The viewing was only supposed to last 30 minutes. After about 15, his family finally walked into the chapel. I left, partly to comfort my younger grand/daughter who had broken down and left the chapel very quickly, but mostly to give his family some privacy.

I never saw a single tear from any of them. As a matter of fact, my husband said they sat near the back of the chapel and he overheard the mom ask, "Aren't they going to say anything? Is this it?"

The one thing she never said was, "Thank you for taking care of the final arrangements for my son." And they left shortly thereafter, never saying a word to anyone.

It became blatantly obvious that this young man who meant so much to my grand/daughter, and was still close to her mother, had never known the love of caring parents. Our hearts broke all over again. So my husband and I got some comfort from knowing that he spoke highly of us and considered us his family. But that came with regret that we didn't try harder to include him in our lives and show him unconditional love. I guess we never knew that we were the only family he felt he had.

Sometimes people can surprise you. And it isn't always good.

Golden

Long before I became one myself, I enjoyed watching The Golden Girls on tv. I still watch every chance I get because those ladies keep me entertained with their sassy humor and unconditional love for each other. I've seen each episode so many times that I have almost every line memorized. For some reason knowing exactly what is about to happen makes it even more enjoyable. I like to keep the show on as background noise and only look up to watch when I realize a favorite scene is about to happen. I guess when you've seen and heard it all, you only really catch the highlights.

My husband and I took a road trip recently. I love road trips. Not only do I enjoy getting away from life's responsibilities for a little while, I also enjoy having a captive audience in the car for a few hours. Most days of the week I spend at home doing what I need to do and listening to the voices in my head (and the Golden Girls, when possible). Nobody here really listens to anything I say. Except me.

While talking my husband's ear off in our confined space on our very long drive, I realized that as usual, he was tuning me out, only occasionally catching the highlights and then reacting to what I was saying.

I really am his Golden Girl.