wake.

compassion is an incredible thing. it is world-altering. compassion is what compels us to reach out to those whom circumstances have left wanting. children without parents. widows. the starving. the sick. the dying. compassion makes their world different than what it would have been without. it is a strong characteristic of Christ. in fact, He demands compassion of us. isaiah is full of this demand. God tells us He is weary of our pathetic forms of religion with our rules and ceremonies. He says He longs to see us move in compassion...to reach out to the orphans and the widows. to love on the down and out. it's a calling.

compassion is one of many of Christ's characteristics. it is one of the easier ones, in my opinion. human nature is compassionate...there are few humans who would not be grieved to see a child die. it is born in us.

grace on the other hand is a little harder to give, though it is just as much a characteristic of Christ. grace is the movement that swims through the wake of sin. and the wake of sin is rough waters.

in the wake of sin is nothing but destruction. it is debilitating, depressing, devastating (i'm not actually meaning to alliterate, but it's kind of cool), its own ground zero. without any other factor, without any other repercussion, the aftermath of sin alone is enough to drive us all to the cross.

this is the beauty of the cross...of Christ himself: He walks over the devastating waters of the wake of sin. He takes our hand. He says, "You're not only going to survive this, you're going to walk on it." that's grace. that while we were YET SINNERS, he died.

we still sin, friends. you're very misguided if you think we don't. think of the person in your life who reminds you most of Christ...the one who you look up to and lean on for spiritual guidance and strength. that person sins. yep. everyday. maybe their sins are what you would call small. maybe their sins are "simple" (not easy, but simple) sins of not trusting God fully with their finances, or dismissing their children every once in a while. maybe their sins are what you would call darker...twisting the truth for the public eye, or lusty thoughts and actions. here's the thing, though, kids. the sin is the same to God. it requires the same cross and the same grace and the same Savior. it is the SAME. the difference, and the reason we see it so differently, is the wake. the wake of the sin of not trusting Him with finances is not as apparent... it does not necessarily leave others wounded. it does not show up all the time. it is more subtle and more individual. the wake of the sin of adultery, however, is much more devastating. it wounds and destroys everything around it. it leaves people broken and afraid and hollow and uncomfortable and unsure. but the sin is the same. and the grace is the same.

we are called to be people of grace just as much as we are called to be people of compassion. i am not always graceful...this blog is a conviction for me as much as it is a plea to you because there are people...maybe one in particular...who i have no grace in my heart for. i want him to hurt and to feel shame and regret and guilt and all the things that grace relieves. i want to condemn him for not offering grace, and in that same moment, i commit the same sin i want to condemn him for. these words are not accusation, they are conviction. please hear that as i type. i don't know who might read this blog...or who began it and never got this far because it was so dang long. but please hear this: you are required to offer grace. if you think that you are justified to condemn...that circumstances have given you the right to drive someone deeper into the devastating waves of the wake of sin, you (like me) are wrong. you are sinning. while the Lord is reaching His hand out to pull someone out of those waves, you are pushing his or her head down below the current. and you are wrong. and so am i.

sin is its own damage. you are not needed to prove its consequence. rather, you are needed to prove grace. this does not mean ignoring the sin. it doesn't mean absolving it (we don't have that right, authority, or power). it doesn't mean pretending the devastation is not there. it means you are meant to be a support as He reaches down into the waves. so am i. and i resent it sometimes. and that sin of resentment is covered by the same grace that covers the sin i resent. it's the beauty of the cross. if you want proof that this is the character of Jesus, read John 4. read John 8. read John 12. freakin' read the whole Bible. amazing grace. do i offer it? do you?