Now that I'm married and no longer collecting manly points to attract the opposite sex, I can finally bare my soul to the world regarding a long repressed childhood memory. Here's the scene I'd rather deny than reveal. I am 11 years old. I go to a small private Christian school that throws parties for sixth grade graduations. I'm in a limousine with my 11 classmates and the girl that I've had a crush on for the past three years is in the arms of another man... who happens to be the most popular kid in my class.
Want to guess what I did in that limousine? You guessed it. I did exactly what jolted love-sick romantics should never do....at least according to the rules of Hollywood. I released my inner sissy and balled like a baby... in front of every single one of my classmates. It was the most humiliating experience of my life up until that point. Here's the part that makes the story even more embarrassing. Another girl in the class felt sorry for me and decided to "go out" with me (Going out was the term used for a steady relationship back then. I have no idea what the term is today). It wasn't until several weeks later that I realized our "relationship" was a sham. Come to think of it, that was a really nice gesture on her part....even if it was a little misguided. After that summer I never saw my first "girlfriend" again.
What could possibly motivate me to share this story with you? Well, apparently, confession is the "in" thing right now. All over the country, people are sharing their stories through websites, blogs, coffee-houses, and various other venues. Some are confessing their most embarrassing moments, others are confessing their deepest, darkest sins. Still others are confessing their disappointments and frustrations in life. I saw on the Today Show a letter a man sent to a confession site that said, "I wish my father would love me for who I am, not for who I'm not." It seems that everyone is telling their secrets. The question is-why?
Well, I can tell you one reason-it's Biblical. The Bible says that Christians are supposed to, "Bear one another's burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ." It seems that the secular world is catching up to what the Bible has been saying all along. As a Bible-believing Christian, none of this comes as a surprise to me. In an age where the most-often repeated phrase is, "I'm a spiritual person, but I don't believe in institutional religion" should we expect anything different? As much as our generation rejects "institutional religion", the truth still remains that none of us were created for isolation. All of us need to have people around us who love us and won't judge us for who we are and what we have done. As imperfect as the institution of the Church is, a place for soul confession is exactly what Jesus and the Apostles had in mind. The Apostle James had it exactly right when he said, "Confess your sins one to another that you may be healed." If the Church really is an institution of redeemed sinners, what better place could there be to bare your soul?
Calling all Christians! Let's give the world a run for its money. It's confession time!
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Aaron Taylor is the author of an upcoming book "Reformation: A Biblical Response to Holy War." Aaron blogs at http://www.aarondtaylor.blogspot.com
Aaron D. Taylor is an author, a speaker, and the founder of Great Commission Society, an organization dedicated to sharing the love of Christ and serving Christians living in countries hostile to the gospel. Aaron is the author of "Alone with a Jihadist" a book scheduled to be released in January 2009.
To contact Aaron, go to http://www.greatcommissionsociety.com
Aaron blogs at http://www.aarondtaylor.blogspot.com
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