Spilt Wine

I recently came to the conclusion that perhaps Grace and Judgment were two sides of the same coin. Without truth, judgment and consequences, there would be no Grace, because there would be nothing to forgive, and we know forgiveness is an extension and act of Grace. I guess it is a matter of spiritual maturity on behalf of the believer to take inventory, listen and abide by the Holy Spirit and to pursue Holiness. However, it is essential to understand that our pursuit of Holiness is not a means of gaining His love and acceptance, rather it is in response to his precious Grace he has extended to all.

I think Paul said it best when he wrote Romans 6.1-4 “What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? Or don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.

I read this quote a few weeks ago, which I really like.

“Love can forbear, and Love can forgive…But Love can never be reconciled to an unlovable object… He can never therefore be reconciled to your sin, because sin is incapable of being altered; but He may be reconciled to your person, because that may be restored.”
-Traherne. (Problem of Pain by C.S. Lewis)

Last week, I took one of the kids incarcerated at the juvenile boot camp to the Army Recruiting Center to take the Army Enlistment Test. When we arrived, the recruiter I had been working with was not available. The make the situation worse, the person giving the test did not want to give my guy the test because he was incarcerated. I felt bad for the kid because all of the sudden he became to subject of whispers and stares. After ten minutes of debating with me, the lady giving the test reluctantly conceded and allowed my kid to test. Three and half hours later, which I spent reading twelve chapters of a Larry Winget book, my kid walked out of the testing room along with the other hopeful soldiers. To my appeasement, and the test giver’s surprise and amazement, my kid (the juvenile delinquent) scored the highest in the class. After she had unofficially graded my kids test, her whole demeanor and attitude towards my kid changed. She was full of praise, politeness and grace, none of the which, she had shown when we first arrived.

Afterwards, I took my kid to Starbucks for a coffee before we returned to the boot camp. It was beginning to rain and coffee seemed like a good way to celebrate his success. It was only the second time ever in his life he had had a Starbucks coffee. I encouragement to continue with his process of trying to enlist in the armed services, but not to keep his hopes up to high. I told him that if the Army denies his application based on his juvenile record, he should seriously consider enrolling in a junior college because his test score proved that he was smart enough to go to college. I also told the kid that he had value and that he needed to always remember that. I explained to him that the lady giving the test was rude, obnoxious and cold towards him when we first arrived because in her eyes, he had no value. All she saw was locked-up punk who probably was not smart enough to pass the exam and had no business even trying to enlist in the Army. However, after he had tested the highest in his testing group, all of the sudden he had value, which is why her attitude had changed towards him. We talked about first impressions, attitude and commitments, which all contribute to value, which he replied “ I want to be valued”.
We all do…