Sin - what is it?

In August Westwinds’ K6 experience studios are studying Genesis 3 – the fall and redemption of humankind. Sin is an abstract, complex concept to understand. We’re asking the kids to do some hard work.

Over the month long studio sessions we are asking the kids
to define sin
to determine if some sins were “worse” than others
to describe the nature of sin, and
to identify how we can restore our relationship with God.

Of course in the midst of preparing for the kids, the Spirit is at work in my own life. My understanding of sin is much different today than when I was a child. As a young person my understanding of sin was the “don’t smoke, don’t drink, don’t swear, don’t have sex.” Some people would have added “don’t play cards and don’t dance,” but I was much more “liberal” in my theology J. Within my faith community there was definitely a hierarchy of sin.

My friend and boss Dave McDonald (one of the most brilliant people I know! seriously, checkout his blog Guerillahost) defines sin as anything that separates or breaks your relationship with God. Working with kids and quite honestly most adults, I needed a concrete way to describe sin and used the contrast and comparison idea.
sin is self-focused (selfish),
Iove is other-focused (unselfish)
or
sin breaks down
love builds up and restores,
Ultimately the end result of sin a break in my relationship with God.

Looking at sin this way is much more challenging than having a list of 10 things I shouldn’t do like “don’t smoke, don’t drink, don’t swear, don’t have sex, don’t play cards, don’t lie, don’t steal, and don’t dance, etc.” That means throughout my day, whenever I make a choice that is focused on my desires over and above other people’s needs and desires, whenever I make a choice that this is more convenient for me; I don’t feel like doing that; I don’t want to make that extra effort – this has the potential to be sin, in my life.

So sometimes reading is a sin for me, not because I’m reading “bad” things, but because I’m using my reading to disengage from others when I really should be engaging.

Sometimes eating is a sin for me, not because food is “bad” but because I’m using food to avoid feeling my real feelings.

I can no longer live by a list of sin, rather I must allow God’s Spirit to guide and show me how to live each moment of my life. . . . . so right now to continue writing my blog, instead of being with my daughter would probably not be honoring to God.. . . so later