Snowball and Slop Bucket!

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Thinking Out Loud

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The other day I was thinking about how many similarities there are between Lance Armstrong and me. You might have heard several years ago that Armstrong, world-famous cyclist and cancer survivor, finally admitted to using performance-enhancing drugs during his career. These drugs undeniably played a part in his ability to win an unprecedented seven consecutive Tour de France championships, which made him a best-selling author and celebrity.

The longer the spectacle played out, the more I saw myself in Lance (with one notable exception). For example, Armstrong and I have both ridden a bicycle. Our last names share several letters. Armstrong has been to France many times, and my ancestors came from France. We both own items of clothing made of Spandex, or Spandex-like material; I choose not to wear mine outside, as a public service to humanity.

The most notable trait we share is also connected to how we are most profoundly different: We have both sinned. Armstrong not only took banned drugs, which gave him an unfair competitive advantage, he aggressively denied doing it for years and attacked anyone who suggested the possibility of guilt. Even in his interview with Oprah, Armstrong did not repent for his sins as much as grudgingly admit that he got caught.

The Armstrong story got me thinking about a mistake I made in college long ago. One of my oldest and closest friends was my roommate in Bible College. Many years ago in Oklahoma City, we had a great time in college: a long, illustrious history of mutual pranks and generally giving each other a hard time as often as possible. One day with over six inches of snow on the ground, I was fulfilling one of my maintenance engineering (janitor) functions in the early afternoon. I was taking the lunch slop bucket to the trash bin, and on this particular day my cup was overflowing. So I was being extra careful in walking through the snow not wanting to slip or fall, and spilling the grossest food matter all over me. I made it a little over half way there when all of a sudden a slushy snowball hits me in the back of the head. I saw stars and black dots before my eyes and slop dripping off the right side of my face. As I looked back to see who did this misdeed, I saw my roommate and friend laughing. I do not know what a mature Christian would do under the circumstances, but I can tell you exactly what a baby believer would do. I ran towards him as fast as my puny legs could carry me. My friend quit laughing and got in a fighter stance. As I got close, I grabbed him by the lapels of his coat and slung him around several times shouting in his face. We never came to blows, but needless to say I was mad, and Larry was so sorry. He never dreamed that he could hit me at that distance. He was just trying to scare me.

Later that afternoon, when I got cleaned up, that sinking, knotty feeling you get in your stomach when you realize you royally screwed up hit me! Larry was a good friend. He would never do anything intentional to hurt me. As he arrived back from his voice lesson, I immediately hugged him and asked him to forgive me. We started laughing about the whole situation. Larry said, “Of course I forgive you. Even though I’m still a little mad, your friendship means too much to me to stay mad. Will you forgive me for hurting you?” How can I describe the relief that brought me? For several hours I thought it was a distinct possibility that I had ruined one of my oldest and best friendships. Now I was bathed in grace and restored to fellowship, all with a handful of words.

This brings me to where Armstrong and I diverge. Based on both his own autobiography and on his interview with Oprah, I’m pretty sure he would be very uncomfortable even using words like “sin” and “forgiveness,” let alone “God,” to describe his situation. Yet, it is the example God gave us through Jesus and His sacrifice that gives us the roadmap to true forgiveness. Jesus said, “‘For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins’” (Matthew 6:14-15).

Our snowball and slop bucket moron moment brought home the power of confession, repentance and forgiveness to me in a very personal way. If I were that grateful to a human being for forgiving me, how much more joyful should I be every day for the presence of God’s grace in my life through Jesus Christ?

I feel bad for Lance Armstrong, and I pray he will have his own moment of clarity before it’s too late. How about you? Is there someone in your life who you need to ask for forgiveness? Or is there someone you need to reach out to and forgive? Jesus never said it would be easy, but take it from somebody who knows: When it’s genuine and God is involved, it’s better than winning the Tour de France.

John T. Catrett, III

ONHL Hospice Chaplain

124 East Broadway

(918) 352-3080