Well hi everyone. I think what I am about to say in this blog post is really good sermon material and probably one of my best ideas to share. It has to do with Presbyterian theology and a verse in the bible that says “I am not ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ.” Well I will say that the both the verse itself and Presbyterian theology have both been a source of stress for me at various times because of my mental illness. The Presybterian ideas have to do with everything already being in God’s control or already decided, which is some of the best news but can be distorted in your mind to make you think there is no hope for some people’s salvation. And the verse about not being ashamed of the gospel has driven me crazy personally because I have continual awkward scrupulosity about sharing my faith. People like me imagine that verse sometimes and feel pressure to share things at the wrong times to some people who have often made things more awkward on purpose. But if you combine those two ideas, the theology of God being in charge of all reality, and the idea of not being ashamed of the gospel, you can realize a tool that can provide some relief to some of our worst angst. And the idea is simply that because God is good and all loving and in control, then all of reality is the gospel. It is good news, and an antidote to shame. You can’t zoom in and get illogical about it and say that tragedies are good, and that is not what I am saying at all. But I am saying that because all things work out for our benefit, then for some of the problems that we feel really bad about, and truly ashamed even, then we can say instead, “I am not ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ.” I am talking about not being ashamed of having said the wrong thing, done the wrong thing, being video-taped making rude gestures or being mad at people, failing at a job, embarrassing health problems, a messy apartment, and even our worst sins that maybe we kind of should feel bad about sometimes. But instead we have full permission to view it all as part of God’s plan and we can tell ourselves, “I am not ashamed of having all the belongings in my apartment ruined by mice and bugs, because it has the power to save. I am not ashamed of accidentally hitting myself in a zoom meeting, because it is part of the whole gospel of Jesus Christ. Do you guys see this trick I am saying? I really think it could work for some of us who are so tormented by our problems that seem to not have a purpose but actually do.
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