Every year at our Ash Wednesday service people have an opportunity to write their sins on a piece of paper, fold the paper, and then pin it onto a wooden cross as a reminder of Christ's forgiveness. One year a family came to the service, and they walked through the worship experience as an entire family. When they came to the confession station, they explained to their 6-year-old son the practice of confessing their sin and writing it on the paper.
So when they all grabbed a sheet of paper and started writing their confessions, he did the same. Remember, he is 6, so he started writing with large, clear block letters. The rest of his family wrote their confessions and then carefully folded the sheets so no one could see the sins they had written down. They intentionally left their names off of the paper as well. Then they walked to the cross and pinned their "sins" on the cross.
This 6-year-old wrote, "God, I'm sorry because I lie." But then he signed his name, and he refused to fold it. He walked to the front and pinned it to the cross. His parents asked, "Why did you put your name on it? Don't you want to fold it up so no one can see?" Then he said, "I wrote my name on it because I want everyone to see it. Because if they know it was me, maybe they can help me stop."