“She used to be a Christian, but now she has fallen from the faith,” commented our elderly neighbor gesturing towards one of her two daughters as we rested in the cool shade below our home and each finished a delicious bowl of vegetable soup that Colleen had made. This daughter refuses to relinquish her indulgent sin and is willing to be shunned from the family of God and be rejected by her peers and possibly her only social connections. I´m asking you to pray. You see, this fallen daughter is about 50 years old and severely mentally disabled… and her grievous sin is the wearing of gaudy, plastic jewelry. There seems to be a tendency to take the beautiful and perfect Gospel and water it down into a set of petty rules that gain admittance to the church social club. And I know that it isn´t just here.
Kalea wanted to give the adorned daughter a colorful rubber-band bracelet to complement her clash. At first, I whispered “no,” not wanting to increase her sin or upset the old lady. But we spoke with her about her belief and decided it was better to encourage the generosity of a child than cower at religiosity. Although her words were unintelligible, her smile and gestures were unmistakable. She liked the bracelet. 
Good post!
Thanks, Allan and Colleen. Let’s call “religion” what it often is — an obstacle that prevents us (and others) from enjoying God’s grace. Thanks for sharing the story. May God have mercy on us all.