The tea kettle whistled, telling me it was time to come to the kitchen table. My mammaw got out

one of her many coffee cups (she was an avid coffer-lover like me). As the steam escaped the

top, she traced her finger around the cup as she told me about her struggles with thoughts that

bombarded her as a young girl – thoughts that said she didn’t measure up, thoughts that said

she would never get to be with Jesus in Heaven because she could never live a life that would

allow her to be.

She shared with me that she didn’t have peace about this until she sought the Lord and asked

Him to show her the truth about His forgiveness. She knew I was walking through the same

struggle she once did and shared with me the scripture that the Lord gave her many years ago.

Opening the Bible to Colossians 2:14, she read these words: by canceling the record of debt

that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross.

The sin, the shame, the person that we used to be is gone because of what Jesus did at the

cross. We do not have to live a perfect life – because of the nails. We can take a deep breath,

release it, and walk in the grace of God – knowing that when you are His child you are forgiven

because of the cross and the blood of Jesus.

We are no longer defined by our sin, but by what Jesus did for us and by who He is.

Friend, I’m not sure if you have wrestled with these thoughts or something similar. Maybe they

are thoughts telling you you’re not good enough, or thoughts saying you couldn’t possibly be

forgiven because you fall short. I want you to know that God freed you from those thoughts the

day you became His. Those thoughts no longer have control over your life.



My mammaw passed away a year ago; and as I sat in my bedroom floor desperately wanting to

be back at that kitchen table listening to her stories and wisdom, I opened a Bible she had

passed down to me. I just so happened to stumble across the words she had written in a

margin, “Praise the Lord I’m saved.” Tears streamed down my face, because although we may

struggle with trying to live a life that’s perfect, we can truly lay that aside and rest in the fact that

we are His and He is ours -- because of the nails.

By Lauren Hill

Lauren has been married to her high school sweetheart, Adam, for 12 years and they have two

daughters, Story, and Violet. They attend the Georgetown campus where Lauren serves in

children’s church.