"Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you be healed." ... James 5:16

A few years ago we purchased a brush chipper to help us keep our property in good order. We left it in the front yard one Saturday, planning to finish the job the next day. The following morning we were shocked to find it missing. Gone! Dirty rotten thieves stole our tools! After the original anger had cooled off, we soon had to admit that it probably was more trouble than it was worth. It often broke down, wasn't large enough to handle anything more than small branches. And after some more thought, we decided "good riddance".

However much to our surprise, exactly one week later the chipper was returned. Again in the middle of the night. It had been cleaned, painted, and it ran beautifully. Attached was the following message, in pencil on a torn piece of paper:

"Hi, I'm Returning your Wood chipper. I got caught up in Taking it By mistake. We didn't use it. So it should still run the same, I felt bad about it. So I gave you a new paint job. Very Sorry About the inconvenience or trouble it cause. Sorry I couldn't return it sooner."

What a confession.

We were obviously stunned, but at the same time amazed that this "dirty rotten thief", had had a change of heart, and went to great effort to redeem himself. We tried to imagine what went through his mind during the week. What had happened? Did he tell someone? How did he make the decision to turn around? Why did he write the note? Was it because he truly had to confess to someone? The mystery remains to this day, and the fact that I still have the note is witness to the emotion I felt then, and still do. I often put myself in his shoes ...... could I have done that? Conducted an act of poor judgment, reconsidered, made amends, and wrote an admission of guilt to the victim. That took courage. Our "dirty rotten thief" was a complicated person. And so are we. And we had to admit to ourselves that our early judgment was premature.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote, "He who is alone with his sin is utterly alone." It is important that we be able to confess our sin and admit our shortcomings. We can always confess to God, but to really accept God's forgiveness, we need to confess to another human being to receive the assurance that all is forgiven. The story of the chipper bears that out.

Lord I thank you for your gift of forgiveness
and for those who help me receive it. Amen

Contributed by Helen L.
Published Sunday June 20, 2004
Week 30 of Liturgical Year C