Tag: Sin

Sin Will Get No Sympathy From God

This has been a week where I’ve really been studying the Bible about sin.  It’s been a topic in the Bible studies I’m working on.  We talked about it at church on Sunday.  It’s something that touches us in some way or another and it made me think about how sin is viewed by God.

We see in Genesis, Noah found favor with God and as a result, he was told to build an ark.  Eight people were allowed on that boat—Noah and his wife along with his three sons and their wives. 

God had seen that the earth had become a cesspool.  It says in Genesis 6:5 “Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.”  God chose to save Noah and his family and start again.  Not a single other living soul was on that ark when God shut the door.  I can imagine the fear as people who had most likely never seen rain before, saw water gushing down on them and even from below come gushing up (Genesis 7). 

While we will never see God do something like this event again, we do know that God feels exactly the same about sin now as He did then…

Sin will get no sympathy from God.

When the time had come for the door to be closed, He shut it.  And when the water started pouring from every direction, He didn’t open it back up for the people who banged on the door begging to be let in.  I know it appears harsh, but sin and wickedness has its consequences.  God is a just God and reclaimed the world to be renewed.

Today, we see God’s attitude for sin hasn’t changed.  He has no sympathy for it because there is no place for sin in His kingdom.  Romans 6:23 says that the wages of sin is death.  He doesn’t ignore it.  He doesn’t let it slide.  He doesn’t excuse it.  Sin gets you death. 

BUT, He does offer us forgiveness when we come to Him.  1 John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”

He’ll forgive that stain of sin and wipe it clean, bringing us back to right relationship with God.  While He has no sympathy for sin, He graciously has a heart of forgiveness for His children!

As we go through our week, let’s be reminded that sin is sin and there is no room for it as a child of God.  When we do, let’s be quick to confess!

~Erin

Sin Permeates Everything

There was a point in my life where I talked myself out of guilt time and time again to soothe myself into believing what I was doing was ok.  My marriage of five years was on the rocks.  My husband was always working.  I stayed at home with the kids and we lived 40 minutes from town.  I was allowed to go have a little fun with my girlfriend once in a while, right?!  It was no big deal, and the lady I was hanging out with went to church so it was completely “fine.”

Except that it wasn’t.  The occasional Girls Night Out on a weekend turned into every week.  One drink turned into drunk at the bar.  I wasn’t getting the attention I felt I deserved at home, so what was the harm in smiling at another guy…or talking to one.  As long as I wasn’t being inappropriate, what was the problem?  Did you notice that I not only tried to soothe my guilt but I also redefined what was considered inappropriate?!  Oh what a web we weave.

Sin permeates everything.

My first mistake was stepping back from church.  Satan set the trap.  Then I stepped back from daily time with the Lord.  Satan began to manipulate.  Instead of being discerning in my friendships, I looked for someone that commiserated rather than edified.  From then on, I was hooked.  Sin took over it all.  Within a year, I wasn’t even talking to God, I was filing for divorce, I had stopped engaging with any of my faithful Christian friends, and I was always looking for the fun party of the weekend.  Sin had taken over my life.  It seeped into my marriage and my friendships.  It melted into my relationship with Jesus.  Even at a moment when I thought I MIGHT be able to salvage my marriage, sin had impregnated so much of my life, I let Satan have the hold on me and continued with the divorce.

Sin.  Permeates.  Everything.

When the Pharisees spoke to Jesus in John 8, they couldn’t understand what He meant about being free when they had not been slaves since the time of Moses.  Jesus responded to them in John 8:34, “…Truly, truly I say to you, everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin.” 

Sin makes you a slave.  It made me a slave to the world.  It made me a slave to the culture.  It made me a slave to Satan.  But God…

Thank you to the one true God who has infinite grace and mercy on a sinner like me!  When I repented of that sin and turned from it, I was released from it.  God didn’t see the jerk that I had been.  Now, He saw the remorseful Christian woman who surrendered it at His feet.

Maybe you’re recognizing just now that sin permeates it all.  Perhaps you think you’ve gone too far to have God forgive.  I’m here to tell you that that it’s not possible.  He seeks you even today.  No sin is too great.  No thought is too much.  No distance is too far.  He is right there waiting to forgive and welcome you back into the fold.  Sin doesn’t have to continue to seep into everything.  The Lord can take it over and turn into a beautiful work for His glory.

~Erin

False Modesty

Have you ever given a compliment and heard a “who me?” with a hand on the chest type of response?  (for instance: What a beautiful dress.  What, this old thing?).

When I think about it, I see it as a strange response and one that I know I’ve been guilty of giving.  In these instances, the receiver of the compliment is normally appreciative of the accolade but is resting on the desire to appear modest.  Often it comes across as fake. 

False modesty is a difficult sin for us to identify in ourselves because it can be cloaked in what we convince ourselves to be true. It works its way into our prayers, our culture, and our everyday lives. 

The bottom line is that false modesty is a sin that is deceitful.  It’s filled with a lie we tell ourselves, as well as others. It requires that we mask our true emotions, as well as potentially re-writing truth in our own minds.  The one who falls prey to false modesty could pretend to appear poorer, sadder, or more sacrificial than the next person.  While these could seem to be great Christian attributes, it is really a giving into human indulgences (Colossians 2:23).

This is also a sin that is filled with pride.  In Colossians 2:18, Paul cautions against those who have false humility as being “puffed up without reason.” (*sidebar* when would it be with reason to be puffed up?). When we are puffed up with big heads, we are self-focused, rather than God-focused.  This isn’t an overt sin that others may see in us but make no mistake…our all-knowing and loving Father sees this exactly for what it is.  Lies wrapped in pride = sin.

False modesty when found out by others impacts our own reputations.  Subsequently, it impacts how others are willing to interact with us.  If we don’t have true humility our co-workers could see us as a show-off, our families could see us as know-it-alls…and worst non-believers could make decisions about their own salvation based on their interactions with our falsely modest selves.  

If you are seeing this as a sin in your own life, I pray that you can confess that to the Lord and work at repenting.  The last thing we want to do is impact someone’s decision about where they will spend eternity based on a dumb comment (what, this old thing?!?!) in order to simply dismiss a compliment. 

~Emily

Hiding Under the Couch

In the late 1990s, I was stationed in California.  While there, I lived next door to a young family in a condo-style building.  The oldest child, Merissa, was about 3 years old when I first met her.  Anytime she was in trouble or afraid, she’d hide under the couch in the living room.  Imagine the sweet little face of a toddler half smooshed under the couch, peeking out to see if the coast was clear. 

Do you have a spot you “hide under” when you’re in trouble or scared? Is it under the covers? In a bubble bath? In a tub of ice cream?  Does that hiding spot also include times you want to try to hide from God?  Notice I used the phrase “try” to hide from God.  Trying to hide is a human quality that does not consider God’s omnipresence.

Jeremiah 23:24 (NASB) shows us that God is everywhere.  “’Can a person hide himself in hiding places so that I do not see him?’ declares the Lord. ‘Do I not fill the heavens and the earth?’ declares the Lord.”

The infinite spirit of God includes omnipresence, which means He is present everywhere in creation. And that my friends…is really hard to wrap our minds around. That omnipresence is awe-inspiring and difficult to understand, but it should also motivate our own sanctification. 

In regards to sin: It helps us with blatant and deliberate sin to remember that God is in all places at all times.  He is a literal witness to all of our sinful behavior.  When I remind myself that God is watching, it often makes me more hesitant to commit the sin.  On the other hand, when I let myself forget that God is omnipresent, I find myself making poor choices.   

In regards to service: It helps us with creating a ‘servant’s heart’ in our own life when we remember that God is in all places at all times.  He is witness to our kindness, our sweet words and actions, and our giving of talents, time, and tithes.  We should not be acting kindly simply because God is watching, but rather it should assist us with becoming more eager to please Him.   

Regardless of if you are hiding under the couch like a toddler or under the covers with ice cream, remember that God’s omnipresence misses nothing. 

~Emily

Horsefly Bites

I was bitten on the back of my leg by a horsefly during a workout at my gym.  Luckily, my partner that morning smashed it like she was trying out to be the heroine in my life movie.  

It was less that 30 seconds from the nip of the angry sky raisin to his untimely death via Angie’s shoe.  However, his actions impacted my life for days afterwards. The bite area became red and swollen.  My pants rubbed uncomfortably on the spot.  The bite mark alternated between itching and burning.  I woke myself up in the middle of the night scratching.  

In short, it was a nagging reminder for days that I’d been bitten by an insect.

Sin is like that in our lives.  A few seconds or moments, which impact several days, weeks, months or even years of our lives.  Sin is like the bite of an insect, which seems small initially until you truly feel the ripple effects.

The first bite of sin happened in the Garden of Eden when Eve was enticed by the devil to eating fruit from the forbidden tree.  Genesis tells us that Eve eats first and then Adam follows suit.  For years many have ‘blamed’ Eve for bringing sin into the world, myself included. However, it should also be acknowledged that Adam committed sin too.  He knowingly committed the sin and was punished alongside of Eve in Genesis 3. 

While Genesis 3 shows Eve committing the first sin, Romans 5 states that Adam caused sin to enter the world.  And as sin came through one man, Adam, it is also through the death of one man, Jesus Christ that the gift of salvation is offered to sinners.  It’s also interesting to note that while Eve was the first to enter into sinful behaviors, the solution to sin came through her seed (Genesis 3:15) with the birth, life, death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ.  

Scripture is clear that sin and death entered the world through Adam, while Eve is the first recorded to commit an overt act of sin with the bite of fruit from the forbidden tree.  

One bite.  

Which became a problem for all of mankind.

Just like one horsefly bite has become a problem for me.

~Emily

Just Call Me Mrs. Lead-Foot

Last week I got to chat with a Colorado police officer after seeing his swirling blue lights in my rear-view mirror.  He clocked me going 50mph in a 35.  The worst part? I could see the 65mph sign just a little further down the road.  

I could blame the rental car company because they set ‘set me up’ with a 2022 cherry red Ford Mustang.  I could blame this little Colorado town because it felt like a speed trap.  I could even blame the police department, since it was the end of the month and I’m wondering if quotas were being made.  

The reality was I was in the wrong. I was speeding.  It was me. Not the car and certainly not the rental agency, the speed trap, or a potential quota.

It’s easy to blame someone else when we’re in the wrong with a traffic infraction.  The same is true with sin.  We can justify sinful behavior in ourselves, when in reality we’re really in the wrong.  

In the speeding ticket scenario, I was wrong…and likely I deserve way more speeding tickets than I actually receive.  Why? Because I’m not caught by a cop every time I speed.  

Yet, God sees every sin.  Every day.  And the reality is that we are essentially “caught” each time. 

Isaiah 1:1-8 tells us about how God sees the persistence of sinful people rebelling against Him.  The Bible also discusses how God acknowledges that we are a broken people who may be generally good at heart, but must be rejected because of our sinful nature.  Several chapters to the right we find that the New Testament offers us salvation through Christ on the cross.  Our sinful nature should get us immediately rejected.  Instead it is forgiven when we accept Jesus as our Savior.  

Sin is sin to our Father.  But sin is forgiven by the act of Christ’s crucifixion and our acceptance of that gift.  

While we deserve the flashing lights and issued ticket for each and every one of our sins, God has provided a path towards salvation through grace to cover each of those infractions. 

~Emily

I Remember…

On 25 June 1996, I was an Airman First Class stationed at Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico. I’d been in the Air Force for two years, but had not yet been tagged to go on a deployment.  I sat in the lounge at the hospital and watched news reports about a horrible terrorist incident in Saudi Arabia, where Airmen in a dorm area known as Khobar Towers had been directly targeted.  It wasn’t easy for my 20-year-old, fairly sheltered, self to reconcile that these were my brothers and sisters who had been killed or injured. 

We lost 19 Airmen that night; 17 were enlisted.  Hundreds, and I mean hundreds, were injured.  Over 500 purple hearts were awarded for that night alone. This event changed lives.  For forever. 

Fast forward 26 years to 2022. This last week, the museum where I work, was able to host over 200 guests who were members at the Khobar Towers, family members of those hurt and those killed, as well as currently serving members representing the KIA units.  It was the first time in Air Force history that we specifically honored those who had survived the events of that horrific night.  

The courage of the survivors is also covered with mourning.  Mourning of the loss of dreams, opportunities, and loved ones.  In Matthew 5:4, Jesus said “Blessed are those who mourn.” It’s appropriate to call on this scripture when our hearts hurt from loss.  

It’s also appropriate for us to recognize that Jesus was talking about mourning over our sinful nature; not just loss.  In response to understanding our brokenness, we may be sad.  But it allows us to see our desperate need for God and that if our sin is not addressed, it keeps us from Him.  The separation from God, due to sin, is worthy of mourning.  

The true good news is that God has provided a way to maneuver through the mourning of sin towards Him.  It is belief that Jesus died on the cross for our sins and that by accepting that free gift, we can have the offered grace and forgiveness of our sins. The way to happiness is often through sadness.  The road to rejoicing is often through mourning.  When you come to the cross, you full comprehend just how happiness and mourning can co-exist.  

Each year the anniversary of Khobar Towers is hard for hundreds of families, friends, and survivors.  As I keep in mind their hearts, I am grateful for Jesus’ words in Matthew 5:4.

“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.”

I remember them…and pray they have comfort.

~Emily

Prickly Ball Things

I don’t really know what else to call them.  I never really thought that much about them when I first moved here, except that they were all over the ground and they fall from some kind of tree.  They reminded me of something you might see in a Dr. Seuss book! 

But I sure thought about them the other day when I walked out onto my bedroom deck and stepped on one.  I will say that I did not use any cursey words.  I will also say that about 14 of them, however, ran through my head.  It hurt.  I’d put it on the same level as a Lego, so captivating.  Until it’s 1030 at night and your child needs a drink of water.

These little thingies from the tree remind me of how sin can sometimes be.  We see it.  Something attracts our attention.  Maybe at first we don’t think much of it.  Perhaps we think it’s interesting or different.  We get used to it being around.  We know it’s there but it’s not really that big of a deal.  And then…  

WHAM!  You misstep.  You take your eyes off of Christ and the sin has ensnared you.  You didn’t even think it was that big of a deal, but before you even realize what you’ve done, satan has sucked you into something that you know isn’t the thing that you’re supposed to be doing!

“Be of sober spirit, be on the alert.  Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” –1 Peter 5:8

We must be aware of our surroundings.  We must be on guard at all times.  This is why our daily Bible reading is so important.  This is also why studying scripture is key.  When we study the scripture, we know what is pleasing and honorable to God.  When the little innocent looking objects/surroundings/people come our way, we can be better equipped to recognize the dangers or missteps that can happen.  This, then, allows us to avoid them and keeps the devil from devouring!

Iron Porch, let’s begin to recognize where those pitfalls lie around us and working on keeping them at bay and our Heavenly Father right in front of us!

~Erin

P.S.  If anyone knows what these prickly ball things actually are, you can leave it in the comments!

What is the One Thing You Would Change?

During a visit with my dear friend Amber, she asked me a thought-provoking question.  

It’s one that I’ve thought about frequently for 2 years. 

If there was one thing in my life I could change, what would it be?

Does that mean right now?  As in, I want a different car? A different career? A different shirt?

Or does that mean something significant that would have changed the course of my life or my impact on others? 

Would it be accepting the assignment to England earlier in my Air Force career?

Getting baptized earlier? Starting a ministry in the midst of doubt?

Would it be starting my Doctorate immediately after my Masters or wait?

Adoption sooner?  More kiddos in my house?

A different retirement location?  

One thing I know without a shadow of a doubt that I would change is from the night of my Senior prom.  You see, my mom had to work that night and I’d told her that my date and I would swing by her workplace so she could see us all dressed up.  But we were running behind…and rather than be late to dinner, we skipped going by to see my mom.  I distinctly remember her face the next day saying that she was sad that she didn’t get to see me.  


I can only imagine her anticipation at work slowing turning into the realization that I wasn’t coming.  To this day, I regret disappointing my mom so completely.  

Other than disappointing my mom on prom night, my answer is pretty simple…I don’t know that there is much I would change.  Even the awful decisions and consequences of my life had purpose.  I would not be who I am today without many of these “learning opportunities.”  

I wonder if Paul (formerly Saul) would change anything from his life.  At the time of his conversion to Christianity, he was a well-known, educated Jew, who actively participated in the persecution of Christ-followers.  He was aggressive in finding Christians.  He was meticulous in punishing them. He wanted to eradicate Christians.  And he was mean in that desire.

An example of his actions is seen in Acts Chapter 7 when he gladly holds the cloaks of those who stoned Stephen, the 1stmartyr for Christianity.  In Acts 8:1 (CSB) it states, “Saul agreed with putting him to death.”  Other versions state that Saul was “delighted” by Stephen’s death.  

Delighted?   

To me, that screams of maliciousness.  It seems extremely mean-spirited.  

Yet just a one chapter later, we find ourselves reading about Saul on the road to Damascus, where he encounters the voice of Jesus and is struck blind.  Talk about the Lord getting his attention in a major way!!! The good news is that at that point Saul believes in Christ and the conversion through salvation.  He is forgiven of his sins, his sight is restored, he is renamed Paul, and he becomes a staunch supporter of the Gospel.  The epitome of forgiveness, grace and salvation.  

I imagine there was then moments of great doubt, remorse, and regret about the life he had previously led.  Hypothetically if I were Paul, I would have a few things that I’d like to change about my past.  In 1 Timothy 1:15 (NIV) we see that Paul said, “Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst.”

Paul believed he was the Chief Sinner.  The worst of the worst.  

While we understand that God doesn’t rack-and-stack sinful behavior, counting one more egregious than another, what we do see from 1 Timothy is that Paul did have remorse and acknowledgment of his awful behavior in the past.  

Would he have wanted to change the past?  Probably, yes.  But I would argue that it was his aggressive persecution of Christians in his past that made him so much more relatable and a solid witness for Christ later in life.  Perhaps in the midst of regretting the past, Paul was wise enough to know that his past, while terrible, would serve a future purpose.  

You see, every bad decision and tragic event of our past makes us who we are today.  And God will use every experience in our past for His glory now.  

There’s not much in my life that I would change. Every single decision and event has shaped me into the person that I am today. 

Is there something you would change in your life? Come to the porch and share your thoughts. 

~Emily

Pride, Love & A Christian Walk

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.” Romans 3:23-24 (NIV)

For nearly a year, I’ve been researching and preparing to conduct a presentation, during Pride Month 2021, on the history of LGBTQ+ Airmen in the United States Air Force.  Last week I gave this presentation, which was filled with history, policy changes, and individual stories of Airmen who have served in the military from the 1940s through today.  As a note of consideration to the reader, I’m a historian who works as a curator of an Air Force Historic Research Institute and museum.  My job is to tell the story of Airmen and research the history of the Air Force.  

In the days leading up to the presentation, I started getting nervous.  It was an honor to be asked to speak and public speaking seems to be a universal “get nervous” activity.  Likewise, I wanted to present accurate information and not go on the record with any incorrect policies or historic examples. 

So, I asked a several people for prayers in that last week of practicing and refining slides.

I was shocked at the responses to these prayer requests.  While there were some positive and encouraging Christians in my corner, the overwhelming response was skepticism, questioning, and even one that expressed outrage.  How can I call myself a Christian and endorse LGBTQ+ people?!?!?!?

Let me say this part again…it’s my job to tell Airman Stories.  All Airman stories.  

But I need to further expand on the rationale behind this presentation so let me also declare this:

It’s my job…my responsibility…my task, as a Christian, to LOVE humans. 

1 John 4:7-8 (NIV) states, “Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.”

In this passage, John is specifically addressing loving other believers with the love of God. While that seems easy to say, the reality is that the believer is just as unlovable as the non-believer. The believer and non-bleiever are both sinful. Therefore, as a believer, I hold fast to the thought that Christ has an expectation that I will love other believers…regardless of it I agree or disagree with them…regardless of if I like their personality or not…regardless of it I sin like them or not.

The non-believer deserves love and respect, as well. How do Christians expect to present the Gospel without being kind and respectful towards others? How do we show Christ’s love for all, when we aren’t being loving ourselves? 

Ephesians 4:32 (NIV) states, “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”

I may not love the sinful choices or behaviors of someone.  I don’t like that my friend stole a pen from the bank, or that my child told a lie, or that I said a swear word.  According to scripture, it is absolutely appropriate to dislike sinful thoughts, deeds, and words.  But scripture is also VERY clear that we are to love our brothers and sisters, as Christ loved the church.  

I acknowledge that there are Christians who absolutely believe that the LGBTQ+ community is wrong in their sinful lifestyles.  Hence the reason so many felt they could speak negatively about my prayer request in regards to the presentation.

I also acknowledge that we have all sinned and fall short of the glory of God.  

All of us.  All of us.  ALL OF US.  For those in the back, ALL of us have sinned…so why are we judging someone else with such absolutes and harshness?  

Perhaps it’s time to stop judging one another based on our sins and start really loving one another past those sins, just as Christ loved us. 

~Emily