Unpunishable: Ending Our Love Affair with Punishment

Living with humans is messy. Our children make messes. Our spouses and friends make messes. So do our coworkers, bosses, pastors, and presidents . . . and so do we. Messes are scary, painful, and offensive. And whether we're dealing with the pain of a personal failure, the frustration of a disrespectful child, the devastation of a major betrayal, the stress of a workplace conflict, or the fallout of larger social injustices, classically we react the same way--with fear, shame, and punishment. These reactions are understandable . . . but they don't do anything to fix the problem. In fact, they only perpetuate a culture of fear, unforgiveness, retribution, and disconnection. Jesus came to show us a better way to respond to human messes--the way of repentance, reconciliation, and restoration. This way removes fear, shame, and punishment from people's lives, empowers them to deal with the root of their problems, and equips them to build a new lifestyle of walking in the light and protecting connection with God, themselves, and others. Unpunishable is a roadmap for walking out repentance, reconciliation, and restoration in our own lives, leading others in this journey, and creating punishment-free cultures of love in our lives, relationships, families, churches, and organizations.