Secrets

She had to be in her mid 80's as I met her, riding on her electric scooter in the hall of her nursing home. She had asked me to come by and visit with her. She had some things she wanted to talk about. And so began two hours of her story to just get us started.

Here are a few things I know:

-We are all just people. Men and women living our short lives, trying to find our way.

-We all have problems. They may be different, but problems are normal to every life.

-We all have passions. You wouldn't know it in the faces of some of those dear old folk you run into, but passion is part of life.

-And, lastly, we all have secrets. We each have things we hide...things we hope no one will ever know.

And so, as I sat and listened to this dear lady's story it struck me, "I never would have imagined that this dear old lady would have ever done such things!" I have heard everything and very little surprises me, but what caught me off guard were the stories this sweet little elderly lady told me of her life and choices. Secrets indeed! I felt I needed a clerical collar to be part of this visit as she confessed her life and choices. It really felt like a final confession...a making things right visit.

We will meet again next week to continue our visit. I know we have more to talk about. My thoughts raced to our own choices even now. Here is this elderly lady who is living with regrets of choices made more than 70 years ago! How can we think that our choices won't be a problem in the years to come? We never forget the choices we have made. It struck me that decisions of the moment will often become regrets of a lifetime.

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It's wonderful that years of bad choices and regrets can be washed away through faith in Christ. His death on the cross made it possible for my friend to know forgiveness and experience God's amazing love. It's every man's solution to a life of regrets and bad choices.