This morning, I came across a wonderful “article” entitled, “An Open Letter to the Christian Bad Girl” (or To The Christain “Bad Girl” Who Wonders if She Belongs) and it moved me to write my perspectives on this topic.

I could go on for hours about why I think that many  Christian “bad girls”  are better Christians than their”good girl“ counterparts, but I won’t. Suffice it to say that those who use phrases like those listed below do not have the heart of Christ and are doing more harm than good when they utter them.

• Good girls don’t have tattoos
• Good girls don’t pierce anything but their ears (one time)
• Good girls have NEVER used foul language
• Good girls NEVER consume any alcohol
• Good girls ALWAYS think, talk & act appropriately in EVERY situation
• Good  girls NEVER have sex before they are married
• Good girls don’t get pregnant
• Good girls don’t have abortions.

Scripture tells us that

“…“There is none righteous, no, not one;
There is none who understands;
There is none who seeks after God.
They have all turned aside;
They have together become unprofitable;
There is none who does good, no, not one…                                                 For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…”

                                  – Romans 3:10b-12 & 23a

So if none are perfect (righteous) why do so many “good girls” feel the necessity to gossip about and belittle those they perceive as “bad girls”?  I believe that the gossip & belittling give the “good girls” a feeling of moral superiority and perhaps even security in their “goodness”.  In fact, the opposite is true, this behavior is laden with sin of its own:

• Gossip – it’s not your story to tell
• Cutting others down instead of building them up
• Judging others – that is God’s job, not ours
• Assuming you are better than someone else – we are all equal in God’s eyes
• Pride is “me” centered not God-centered.

So I ask you, who is the “better” Christain?  The “bad girl” who is honest about her stuff or the “good girl” who hides in her perfect “Christian bubble” and never shares who she really is with anyone.

After you think about that for a minute, do you know which one you are?

Are you happy with the picture that you see?

As a jail/prison Chaplin, I am often reminded that each of us in just one “bad” decision away from being incarcerated ourselves. We are encouraged to be transparent and authentic with the men & women that we are interacting with because they will see through any facade that we try to put up. Every time I go into a jail or prison I feel God’s peace and allow Him to share whatever parts of my story that need to be unveiled that day. Yes, I have some less than “good girl” things in my past (especially in my 20’s) but the truth of the matter is, Jesus paid the price for all of it before I was even born.

I encourage all of you “bad girls” to reach out, don’t be afraid of telling your story. We are a lot more alike than you may think.