Ash *hearts* exclamation marks

mike-foster:

A provocative new People of the Second Chance visual project coming this November. 

messycanvas:

Secret Message (Taken with instagram)

reademmaduh:

People of the Second Chance (POTSC from here on) is an organization I was introduced to by one of the pastors at Water of Life, my home church. I wasn’t so much as told about them but more along the lines of I saw Shane (our pastor) wearing a shirt I thought was pretty cool. As a new Christian I thought to myself “People of the Second Chance… what an incredibly accurate description of the lives of so many of us sitting here at church.” I admit, I went and bought one of the ‘cool shirts’ before doing much research on the organization as a whole. I stuck the sticker on my car and carried on with my business. Recently I’ve become more involved with the core concepts of this group. Grace and second chances. Sharing love when the world hides their eyes. The real heart of this group can be found here. When I saw the opportunity to be involved in this new series, I jumped at it, before I even knew what the challenge would be.

Boy was I in for a kicker.

I saw the first poster in the series and very nearly ignored the email. If I’m honest here, I was scared and confused and uncomfortable. Uncomfortable because this character was someone I knew was a scandalous subject and someone I personally had strong opinions on, opinions I’d actively voiced only months ago. I was confused because I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t know how to react. Oh, I knew what the proper response should be, but I also knew I was facing a challenge. Finally, I was scared because I didn’t know what the reactions would be to my opinions, my posts, and my heart.

All of these things very nearly kept me from making this post but I’ll tell you one thing: we were not called to live comfortable lives. we are not called to sit quietly by and let the world go on spinning. we are the voices that rise out of the silence challenging the accepted and spreading love and hope to the hopeless.

One of the most beautiful things I’ve ever encountered is grace. Grace given by God. Grace given by those I’ve hurt. Grace dished out by others. It’s something we are all familiar with and it’s something we love. Who doesn’t love being forgiven? Who can tell me heartfelt acceptance isn’t an amazing feeling? We love to be forgiven but we fail to forgive.

I for one lunged into the ‘freedom from the past’ aspect of Christianity. I loved the blank slate. I encountered the other side of that coin only recently. Forgiving. Not being forgiven, but forgiving others.

I was quick to dish out my opinions a month ago about the innocence or guilt of Ms. Anthony. What I failed to remember is grace and second chances. As I approached this post I was so clearly reminded of my own misdoings. All of the things I was relieved of. Why was I so different than her? What makes it ok for me to look past my discretions but point fingers and judge someone else? The answer is it isn’t. The beauty of grace is that it’s a free gift from the Father’s heart to us.

“There is no one righteous, not even one” Romans 3:10

“Let he who is without sin cast the first stone” John 8:7

How do I compare with perfection? What makes my circumstances any different than hers? Is she not offered the same second chance? Who am I to pass judgement? I am called to love the unlovable and forgive the unforgivable because that is what Christ did and that is the heart of His grace.

This series has shaken my world. Turned my opinions on their heads and blown past what is safe and comfortable. I will be the first to tell you I was close minded and stubborn when it came to forgiveness. Those walls have been torn down and my mind has been opened in a way I never thought possible.

We are all offered second chances. It’s what we do with it that counts.

Who would you forgive? Who would you give a second chance?