"...the stickers only stick if you let them."

It wasn’t that long ago that the word “sin” was very bristly to me. I didn’t like it, and I certainly didn’t say it, or talk about it. Something about the term seemed very old fashioned, small minded, unnecessary, judgmental and shaming. Looking back, I suppose it was because I didn’t know EVERYONE around me was a sinner, even the really "religious ones". I suppose it was also because I didn’t know I needed a Savior, or that there even was a Savior. I didn’t spend much time thinking about the “whys”, I just knew how that word made me feel….bad.

Well, a lot has changed since those high school and college days. The word now rolls off my tongue, runs through my mind, and taps on a keyboard without any flinch of pain or shame. It isn't because I'm any better or worse of a person, it's because I'm a forgiven person. It is a process to get comfortable with identifying yourself as a sinner. It is a process to recognize the need for a Savior. He’ll reveal it to you if you ask. Of course, even talking to God to ask for something like that is a big step in itself. I’ve been reading The Ragamuffin Gospel by Brennan Manning this week. Check it out if you have not read it. Check it out again if you have. I suppose his writing has reawakened in me the need to never stop seeing myself as a needy, undeserving sinner. That humble reminder is how each day truly becomes a gift.

A pastor I enjoy listening to on the radio, Alistair Begg of Truth for Life, comically recounted a situation he was in that I could completely relate to. Alistair was on the golf course with a few lads (he’s an “R”-rolling Scotsman) he didn’t know very well. Inevitably his vocation came up, and through that the word “sin” came up. One of the men in his group scoffed, and claimed not to be a sinner. Well Alistair had a good chuckle at that, and told the guy he would REALLY like to shake his hand, because since the beginning of time, no other man but ONE has lived a sinless life! Ha ha! Isn’t it funny how that word can hold so much weight and burden and judgment, as to cause many to want to completely disassociate from it. It did to me. But denying sin is denying the need for a Savior. And denying the need for a Savior is letting blood that was shed for you go to waste. It is that personal.

There has been a lot of debate recently in my home state of Indiana, over a freedom of religion bill. I don’t want to debate the bill, but I can say the fallout and discourse from it have been ugly. Very ugly. A great neediness for acceptance by the world has been on display. It breaks my heart, because no law or right granted by the people of this state or country will lay the foundation for inner peace. Expecting the world to offer acceptance of our sin is setting up an ongoing cycle of pain and disappointment. You name the sin, and there will be someone out there who will shame you for it. Of course that isn’t what the story of grace is all about, nor do I think that bill has anything to do with shaming, but this is the world, not Heaven. There is only One who we can depend on to forgive and forget our sins, every day and all day. Jesus, God in flesh. He already carried the burden of them, ALL of them. His precious blood paid for them, so we could be free. Free of shaming labels and judgments that pierce the heart. We will still face plenty of judgement on this earth, but the armor of God* will keep it from saturating our being. We have to look to Heaven to lay the foundation of peace, not to store owners, and not to politicians. When you truly know you are a sinner, and you have a Savior that loves you and has released you from the weight of sin, the judgment of the world will fall away. Grace begins. Receiving it and offering it. This is how an ongoing cycle of peace and love can begin.

*Read about the armor of God in Ephesians 6:10-18

Also, for all ages, the picture book You Are Special by Max Lucado illustrates the amazing story of God’s grace to us when we go to Him. “……the stickers only stick if you let them.”