All it takes is a little light.

Remember a couple of blog posts when I was wide awake at fourteen-thirty in the morning, kept up by twirly thoughts about a mysterious situation that no one would discuss with me?

Well, I just got back from having lunch with one of the key figures in the situation and am pleased to report that none of the darkness and weirdness was orchestrated by him, in fact, he seems to have been as perplexed by how the situation was handled as I was.

As far as the situation itself goes, yes, some bad stuff happened.  People did things they should not have done.  Lines were crossed that ought never be crossed and there were multiple failures which served to expose even more failures.  And that is all the detail any of my blog-readers need.

But I will say this:  I am struck by what a wonderful thing it is to hear the story of someone who has failed, who has let down a ton of people and see that person being as real and honest as they have ever been, even more so;  To see no sign of scrambling to fix it, no sign of denial, no making light of it, no sign of simple desperation to return to a position.  It was wonderful instead to see the very real Joy of Christ and faith in his redemption still very much alive in the midst of true repentance.  I don't think you can really repent without getting kind of happy that repentance is an option.

It's a great feeling to know someone who has failed and to think no less of him, to possibly think even more of him.  To think, "I'm glad I know that guy and I'm glad to be his friend," and to honestly believe that I would still gladly go into battle with him, knowing that he fights for the right side.

A large part of why it feels so good to feel this way is that it helps me to believe that people will feel similarly when I fail.

That's sobering.  I will fail.  I don't know how, I don't know when, but it is inevitable.  In some way, I will majorly hurt and offend people I love and care for.  And when I do, I hope I will have people around me who will remind me that people who fail honestly can be loved in an even more precious way than people who succeed.