Why Do I Need to Let God Have My Sin?
Yesterday we discussed the places in our life that need change and our need to change allow God to change them. There is a very foundational and essential aspect to our spiritual relationship with our heavenly father. This discipline that we are practicing this week is one that not only brings us closer to the presence of God but also makes us look more like him the more often we practice it. As you learn to walk with God you learn all the basics of life in their spiritual form. How to talk: the story of God. How to walk: living like Jesus. How to eat: studying scripture and understanding it. Believe it or not ….. How to poop: repentance and confession... LET IT GO
What Makes This Important?
Repentance and confession gets the garbage out of our hearts and minds so that we can be spiritually healthy. If you don't practice this you get sick and eventually the garbage finds its way out and its usually in a way that is less than ideal. This practice is one that is as embarrassing spiritually as it is physically because we don't want people to know we have garbage floating around in our life. The funny part is that when people know.... they can help you clean it up.
How Do I Let It Go?
Repentance and confession are a two fold practice, It starts with us repenting which is acknowledging that we have done wrong and admitting that to God which then pushes us in the opposite direction of that sinful action. once we are facing God we can then step into confession, both to God and other people. The confession to other people is the part that most people have a difficulty with but it is important to do this because it places you into another important practice, accountability. you may only feel comfortable confessing to your spouse... or a sibling, but the important part is that you do this with someone.
Pray This As You Step In Repentance
Lord Jesus,
I’m tired of the sin struggle in my life. I feel distant from You. My choices have not led me into the right places. I’ve listened to the whispers of my enemy instead of Your words in Scripture, and the result has been disastrous.
I once walked with you, my heart tender to Your leading. Yet little by little, I exchanged Your truths for temptations and deceit that led me away from You. Instead of taking thoughts captive and confessing them immediately, I allowed them to grow totally out of control. Repentance was not in my vocabulary. Blame, cover-ups, or trying to reason and rationalize sin never work. They only give birth to deeper sin entanglements.
You created me in Your own image, Lord. You know my thoughts before I speak them. You x-ray my heart and see through my excuses and intentions. Your Spirit warned me, but I ignored You. Disappointment and discouragement have taken their toll on me.
So today I’m confessing my desperate need for You. You have promised that if we will confess our sin, You will forgive us and make us clean again. Lord, I truly need Your forgiveness. Repentance is on my heart and lips. I want to turn around and head another direction—back to You, Lord. But I need Your help.
Now What?
Repentance and confession are fairly self explanatory but just in case practical steps are helpful here are the practical steps of Repentance and confession.
1) Recognize- the ways you have transgressed against God, or other people
2)Repent- to God all the specific ways you have transgressed against God or other people. Acknowledge that you do not want to do this anymore.
3) Confess to God- that you need help with the transgressions again God or other people and ask him to guide you in the ways you should go.
4) Confess to Someone- that you are struggling with what you have confessed to God and see if God does not use this person to direct you in the ways you should Go.
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