Most people are enjoying retirement by the age of 83, but not Doris Marie Payne. She gained world renown in a career that spanned more than six decades. Her work has taken her across the United States and even into several European countries.
She’s had ups and downs along the way but now that she is on probation with an ankle bracelet and a judge’s warning, I’m guessing life will calm down for Doris.
What does she do for a living? She’s a jewel thief.
No one knows how long she’s been swiping swag from high-end stores, but stealing a 10-karat diamond ring in Monte Carlo (valued in the 1970s at $500,000) earned her international notoriety.
One detective had to admire the woman who continued stealing all the way into her 80s. He said, “She is very good at what she does. She has the style.”
In all of the stories I read about Doris, I noticed that there was very little discussion about her “normal” life outside of crime. It was as if the criminality of her years had come to define her. When we walk in sin long enough, it marks us with its brand.
Sin becomes our master (Romans 6:12-23) and we are known by what we’ve done. This seems to be the case when Paul speaks directly about “thieves” who have become Christians:
Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need.
Ephesians 4:28, ESV
Paul begins by addressing those whose sins defined them (thieves) and commanded that they stop this sin and turn from it. Notice the transition. They should begin by putting their hands into honest work and use their skills for God’s purposes. Having earned an honest living, they can now give and provide for those in real need. This is the transformed life – God’s Spirit moving us from lives of sin-slavery into lives of selfless giving.
Consider your own life. What label would have been justly placed on you because of sin? Liar? Cheater? Sluggard? Gossip? These labels feel ugly and awful but it doesn’t help to sugar-coat our own defects.
Now that you are in Christ, I suspect that the old labels want to make a return. Satan would love for you to define yourself according to the nagging sins he keeps promoting.
God takes away these labels in Christ and calls us to define ourselves according to Him alone. Instead of using words to gossip, we use them for showing mercy. Instead of wasting our time in laziness, we do good works in Christ’s name. Even the most notorious thief can become known for generosity in this wonderful Kingdom. Let Him begin to transform your life!