A Good Girl

(Originally written for the school newspaper.)

I think I was a good candidate for Christianity. I’ve always lived a pretty moral life. I think I was a good kid growing up (I must admit, though, that my Mom laughed when she heard me say that once…) I’ve never smoked a cigarette, gotten drunk, slept around, or really been in trouble with the police. I basically like following the rules! Of course, I have plenty of other problems in my life - I’m not saying I’m perfect. But when I came to follow Jesus, the switch to living under a Christian moral code wasn’t hard for me. I guess I’m a pretty good person, and I like that.

But then I read what Jesus says: “I did not come to invite good people but to invite sinners” (Matthew 9:13). For some reason, my precious righteousness doesn’t impress Jesus as much as it impresses me. In fact, to Him “all our righteous acts are like filthy rags” (Isaiah 64:6).

I really believe that it is important for a Christian to live a moral life, and I don’t regret the mistakes that I didn’t make. But we all stand in grace, and I am no better than someone who has a more colorful past. Maybe the people who are the really good candidates for Christianity are the ones who recognize how much they need God and His mercy in the midst of their sin, not the ones who find it easy to live a good life.