Week 5, Day 29 - Wasting Away

"Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord does not account against him and in whose spirit is no deceit. When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long...Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the Lord' - and you forgave the guilt of my sin."  Psalm 32: 1-5

REFLECT

Have you ever kept a secret of some dark, embarrassing thing because you knew that if it ever came to light, people would look at you entirely different? You don't want to confess it to another person - and maybe you don't need to - but you can't even imagine confessing it to God. And you know that's a mistake. 

Know that you're not alone. Those who follow God as closely as can be, such as King David who wrote this Psalm, are still sinners who remember transgressions of the distant past and recent past. David says that when he keeps these things to himself, when he pretends he's perfect and doesn't ever confess them to God, the feelings of emptiness and despair inside him becomes overwhelming - his bones go soft and brittle.

That's a description of what unconfessed sin feels like. It eats away at us like a savage disease. But the good news is it doesn't need to be that way. Jesus says come to me all you who labor with such guilt and shame. Confess and acknowledge this thing to God. He already knows so we're not going to surprise Him with shock and awe. This confession is for our benefit. But some may ask if I acknowledge this before God will He reject me? Will God cast me out of His presence?

David said that when he decided to end the covering up, to let his whole life come under the brilliant light of God's grace, truth, and righteousness, something wonderful happened: "you forgave the guilt of my sin."

What does this forgiveness mean? The biblical words means simply ‘to release.' God has said that, if we open our eyes and admit our need, He stands ready to release us. Our history is not changed, but praise Jesus, He can and does change our future!

MAKE IT REAL

Today is as good a time as any to take at least 20 or 30 minutes - in a private place - or on a walk - and confess to God the sins the Holy Spirit brings to your mind. Dare to take the cover off, talk to God and see what wondrous feelings accompany such an event.

Day 30