Grace like an infection

A few weeks ago, a dear friend (kind of out of the blue) asked my forgiveness. I was shocked, because I was the one who needed to ask for his. It wasn’t a huge offense, nothing that was capable of ruining our friendship. I just needed to apologize for assuming some things and letting our friendship drift a bit. And there HE was asking mercy of me. In that moment, Christ’s presence was truly thick in our midst. Two dad dudes standing there forgiving each other and saying I’m sorry, like grown ups, like men, like disciples of Jesus. It was perhaps, miraculous. 
 
It doesn’t take a scientist to realize that we live in a culture of blame. Social media and greed has thrown us into a frenzy of tribalism, where only others are to blame for our issues. To take any responsibility is to admit defeat and weakness. To admit wrong, even a teeny tiny bit of wrong, means now we are THE responsible party. But this isn’t true at all. 
 
What if my friend AND I were both responsible for some wrongdoing? And what if we weren’t the only ones either? What if there were others involved? Could I have not realized I was injuring my friend because of something from my own formation? Who’s responsible here? 
 
I’m coming to believe that evil in the world cannot be blamed on a single person, ideology, circumstance or group. There is an enemy of God that no one likes to talk about. And his main mission is to divide us.
Who’s to blame? All of us and none of us. But in Christ, we are free forever from that yoke. He suffered to redeem us and we are free indeed. 
 
After a good tight bro hug and some encouraging words, both my friend and I walked away lighter, happier, more free. If you were at Encounter Texas and you thought God did some great work through Cana and I and the others, know that the vessel He used for a lot of that was my dear friend. His boldness was infectious. It spread through me and others, the ministry team, the staff. That conference was not only beautiful on the outside, there was a whole lot of healing mercy going on behind the scenes too.
 
I think I’ve heard my father in law say “when you point a finger at someone, you are really pointing four more back at yourself.” The funny thing about wrongdoing, is everyone can always admit to some imperfection and some fault. So I’m here to say in blog form today (and I hope we can connect soon), if I’ve ever pointed a finger in your direction, I’m truly sorry. If I’ve ever hurt you or disappointed you, I’m sorry for that too.  Please forgive me. 
 
Peace and Good!
 
Ennie