It is a phrase that brings great comfort to me, even though I am certain that I can neither imagine the depth of my own brokenness (read 'sin') nor the depth of God's eternal, abiding love for me (read 'mercy' and 'grace').
We could probably have a good conversation around what exactly 'sin' is, but my theory is 'if it looks like a duck and walks like a duck,....' That is, most of us know sin when we see it.
There is difference of opinion around the 'really bad sins' and the 'really you want to count that?' sins. Some folks think you cannot separate sins into such categories - either you have broken your relationship with the Creating and Redeeming God (i.e. sinned) or you haven't. Either you are living as a reflection of God's perfect love for you in Jesus Christ, or you aren't.
I would guess that we have our own techniques for distinguishing the big v. the smaller sins. I think it might be dependent on how permanent the damage turns out to be. It might depend on how many people are hurt. It might depend on how deeply or terribly we sin against ourselves by failing to honor the gift of life given to us by God. So, 'snitching' my daughter's cookie off her plate when her back is turned (really, that's a form of stealing, right?) doesn't seem quite as terrible as stealing the pension funds of 1000 people.
At my core, I don't think it really matters how 'big' the sin is (if cookie stealing is a sin), but rather the crack it causes in our relationships with one another and then ultimately, the crack that it makes in our relationship with God. Small acts can make big cracks and big cracks can lead to a whole building crumbling.
Since we usually begin our worship with an order for confession, I enter into each Sunday worship thinking about the state of my relationship with God that week. I am never foolish enough to think that God and I are in perfect harmony, although there are weeks when nothing specific comes to mind. That's when I know that I have been a bit distracted from God during the week. It's a good time to breathe deeply of the Holy Spirit's gift of loving forgiveness, making God really present in the moment, or to use the prophet's oft used phrase.......to call on the name of the Lord.
to give thanks for God's presence and promises.
to remember Jesus' model of life lived bringing life to others.
to open myself to all that might be.
then, most importantly, to listen closely to these wondrous words of grace
"Your sins are forgiven"
Come beloved, live again the resurrection life.
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