Week 8, Climb Spree, Episode 598, Act One



https://www.thisamericanlife.org/598/my-undesirable-talent

Listen to Act One, 24 min

All of us have probably fanaticized about being a cat-burglar, Mission Impossible-style. Okay, maybe you haven’t. Yes, it would be stealing… and breaking one of the 10 Commandments. This episode explores the story of a Mormon man who lived a double life as a cat-burglar, who was so successful and prolific in his crimes that the San Francisco police department named him “Spiderman”. But his nightly adventures were born out of an addiction that was destroying him. In the end he wanted to get caught.





  1. What is the most daring or crazy thing that you have ever done?
  2. All of us live a double life to some extent. There is who we really are and then there is the person we want everyone to think we are. We might have even convinced ourselves that the truth is found in the latter rather than in the former. Name two characteristics that are true about yourself - one that is from an aspect of your life you willingly make public, and one that is from a part of you that you most often hide.  
  3. There are parts of this story when the main character experiences some real feelings of fear and discouragement. In what ways could you relate to him?
  4. Sin often compounds in the same way that “Peter Parkour’s” crime spree did. When have you seen sin begin in a person’s life (maybe your own) in a small way and gradually take more and more space until it has become a destructive obsession.
  5. Peter indicated that he quickly lost perspective on what was happening in his life. He justified himself with the thought that when he had enough money, from stealing or from gambling, he would just be able to stop and then this chapter of his life would be done. But how easy is it to step back from a lifestyle once it has begun? When we participate in evil we are changed in way that cannot be undone without the grace found in Jesus Christ and his atoning sacrifice on the cross. Have you ever deceived yourself in this way believing you can just quit at any time? How? When?
  6. Read James 1: 13 – 15. James give us a clear description of the process of sin. What do you notice in this passage about the relationship between sin and temptation?  At what point does sin become sin? What is the result of sin ultimately?
  7. Facing the ugliness of personal sin is an important step in Christian maturity. Until then we can often keep the idea of sin and wrong doing as a mental concept that we can be detached from. Peter’s experience of stealing a purse forced a change in his self-perception. How so? Do what extend do you think you are still coming to terms with the reality of your own sin? Is it still abstract or has it become a personal knowledge?
  8. Knowledge of one’s personal sin is necessary in order to fully understand the value of Jesus as your Savior. As Jesus indicated in the parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector Luke 18: 9 - 14, only one of the men left the temple at peace with God. Which one and why? In the same sense, how might a true knowledge of one’s own sinfulness lead to an authentic faith and lasting peace with God?

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