Sometimes, we like to hold celebrities up to higher standards than we're willing to achieve ourselves. In Mel Gibson's case, he has apologized numerous times, but to many it's not acceptable because he's a role model, a public figure who should know better and act accordingly. That sounds all well and good, but what if the situation were between you and your child? If you screwed up, how many times should your child ask you to apologize? Children may be many things, but their best quality is they forgive their role models – US – without making us feel any worse than we already feel. Why can't we forgive and gladly give second chances with the childlike faith we're called to exhibit?
Jesus also had words on several occasions in regards to “second chances”. We can point to the adulteress who was going to be stoned to death; Jesus said whomever is without sin can cast the first stone. The crowd leaves, and not only does He forgive her sin, he gives her a second chance by commanding her, “Go and sin no more.” What about the woman in Luke 7:37 who is known to be a prostitute, who comes in and washes the feet of Our Lord with her tears and anoints them? What does He say to the crowd at the table? He gives us the parable of the two debtors, and asks them to judge which one is more grateful to have their debt forgiven. “The one who owes the most”, they replied. “ Therefore I say to you, Her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much. But to whom little is forgiven, he loves little. ” (Luke 7:47) Paul warned us in 1 Corinthians 13 to beware of doing anything without love.
Dallas is considered to be the belt buckle of the Bible Belt, and yet I have met more false, carnal Christians here than any other place I've been. How incredibly sad! When I was laid off with ten years of experience in my field, I went on interview after interview. On numerous occasions I'd see Christian bracelets on the ladies, crosses on the gentlemen, and then have them ask me about my resume. My Christian charity business always attracted the most questions, but I always left feeling like a leper. I was grilled and viewed skeptically as a liar. “Who would start a charity business, draw no salary from it, send Christian materials in the Texas prison system, while being broke? It must be a ‘resume gap' technique.” I had some potential employers tell me I wasn't the owner of the business, but a friend who got me started selling on Ebay was. “No, the business is legal in Texas and I'm the sole owner – I pay the taxes, I make all the purchases, I ship all product, and it's simply a charity vehicle.”
I spent two years out of work because no one would give me a second chance with a resume gap. I then went back to work for a few months before my job was outsourced to India. If a resume gap isn't near fatal in Texas, bad credit is the death certificate. Everyone wants to run credit checks and ignore my resume, but I can't fix my credit without a second chance. When I see Christian jewelry at an interview, it has consistently been the kiss of death, resulting in a “thanks for coming in, but we've decided to go with another candidate.”
I haven't wronged any employer. I haven't stolen anything. I worked hard, stayed late, came in on holidays and treasured quality output because I was brought up to believe it not only defined who I was, but was the best descriptor of my ethics. As a Christian, my responsibility is to give not only eight hours of honest work for eight hours of pay, but to protect the company and their secrets. In this day and age in which corporate spying results in huge losses, it should be of some comfort there is someone watching your back on the front line and expects nothing more than their usual paycheck. “ Masters, give to your slaves what is just and equal, knowing that you also have a Master in Heaven. ” (Col 4:1) Instead, I've encountered more odd looks as if I had three heads when trying to honor God's Word.
Is there a second chance for people like Mel and myself? In God's Kingdom it's always a warm, resounding yes. The real world? Only the Father and Son know.
Other quazen.com articles by this writer can be found here . If you enjoyed this article, consider digging it with others!
