My Mess

Courtside at the Spurs game and what do I do? Spill my drink on the floor.  Not just a little bit, but a lot. It seems that I’m ditzy at the worst possible moments. Reinforcements were called in and soon, a towel lady was there to wipe up my mess. Really, Nancy?

The truth is I not only make mistakes on a regular basis, but I’m pretty good at sinning. It comes naturally. I don’t like it, but it’s a part of my human nature. What I notice most about my mistakes is this: I want to cover them up. I want to hide them. I want to act like it didn’t happen. I want to blame it on someone else.

We prefer to live with the false confidence that we’re basically good people who occasionally have a “spill” here and there. In other words, we all sin, but we do our best to cover it up and can literally live our lives this way. If we believe that, we’re failing to deal with the issue of sin that lurks within each of our hearts.

Perhaps we measure ourselves by the wrong standard? Oh, I don’t have as many spills as that person does! But, if I compare my goodness with others, that standard won’t work. It’s the wrong standard! Maybe I’ll feel good for a moment, but being better than so and so isn’t really a meaningful standard. Also, I'm bound to find someone who's way better than me! Again, not a good standard. 

God’s standard is different; God IS the standard and He is perfect. God is righteous. No matter how much human righteousness we have, it cannot meet the standard God gives. We can’t even measure up to our own standards! There is not one person on the face of the earth that is righteous, not one, the Bible states. (Romans 3:10) So, what do we do?

Coming to grips with that I’m ALWAYS going to sin is quite freeing. God’s standard is to be as good as God himself. None of us can reach that outside of Jesus! God sent Jesus to this earth and ultimately to the cross to deal with our sin problem. For me, understanding my own sin problem helps me jump for joy for God’s grace! I don’t HAVE to try to earn God’s favor through my own meager efforts. Because of God’s grace, He changes my desires to want what He desires and to love what He loves.

Do I still mess up? Every day. Yet, God is there, so patient and so loving to help pick me up and remind me that I’m clean before Him. The more I realize I can’t please God on my own, it drives me to need God more and more. There’s an added benefit. Rick Warren says it so well: “The love of Jesus Christ covers your sins, and it also gives you the power to let other people off the hook. You’ve been forgiven and you can forgive others.” We not only experience the gift of God’s grace, but we extend grace to others. Who doesn't need a bit of grace these days?

Nancy Abbott is the Chaplain of the YMCA of Greater San Antonio.