A frequent commenter here on the blog
who goes by the name Credis Dervish posted the following four lines across two
comments yesterday in response to my Submit: The New S-Word post. Credis is a
self-described anti-theist, a piece of information I share only to provide a bit of
context for the comment. She writes:

don’t be too hard on
yourself.

recognizing your
fallibility is a great achievement!

i’m rooting for you.

there is nothing inherently
“christian” – but a lot human – about fallibility.

I thought long and hard about Credis’ words.

“…fallibility is a great achievement.”

What a delicious paradox. Having spent a
lifetime in pursuit of an impossible perfection, I have learned (usually the
hard way) that this is a powerful truth.

“…there is nothing inherently
“christian” – but a lot human – about fallibility.

Also a potent truth: One that is
evidenced as addicts of all stripes pursue humility in addiction recovery
programs all over the world.

And yet, while there may be nothing
inherently Christian about fallibility, I have – despite my own reticence – found
something in Christianity that has propelled my pursuit of fallibility in a
deeper and more sustained way as a result of this transformative faith.

Undoubtedly people can change. I changed
plenty and for the better during nearly a decade of self-propelled efforts to
improve myself – first by sheer force of will, and later with the help of a power-greater-than-myself. Since coming to this faith, however, my
efforts to change shifted. I went from focusing on things I wanted to change – things that would make me more comfortable, or wealthy or increase my prestige – to changing things I needed to change.
Flaws and shortcomings I did not even know were there began to emerge. My efforts to change from the outside-in seemed to come from this inside-out. It did not come simply and required letting go of all that I had previously held sacred. But, as if a wall of bricks had stood between me and the life I was meant to live, each thing I lost opened wider glimpse of a new, freer life.

So, thank you Credis for giving me such a sweet nugget to chew on. Looking forward to future dialog…