Summary: Throughout his life, the genius Albert Einstein changed religious labels more than once. Two of the most prominent labels he wore were “atheist” and “deist.” It turns out that labels aren’t always bad. They’re often good. They’re only bad if we don’t check what’s inside first—or if we willfully mislabel someone. All of us have had the experience of being mislabeled, sometimes maliciously, by others. Just as sad, I’ve talked with men and women who have mislabeled themselves. If someone tells me she is a “former Christian” and an “atheist,” that may mean that she no longer believes in God or His existence. Then again, it may mean that she feels Jesus walked out of her life, let her get terribly hurt, and she’s so angry she thinks she’ll never forgive Him. In any case, “former Christian” and “atheist” don’t tell me anything negative about her. It tells me only that I want to hear her story. If you told your story to me, what labels would you use to describe your religious convictions or lack thereof? What do those labels mean to you? And, what should they mean to me? God always sees past our mislabeling. He stands ready, with arms open wide. Today is the best day to come back home. This is Andrew Palau.
