Why do we worry and fret over a sin unrepented?  Worry just makes the sin grow in inside us.  Sin has side effects of grumpy moods, causing hateful words to fall from our lips that hurt others around us.  Why hold it in or hold it close to our hearts as if it were a precious prize for us to control?  Sin unresolved is uncontrollable.  Sin is like a cancer that spreads rapidly affecting every part of our being.  Sin, along with the results of our bad decisions, can’t find a comfortable place to live in a life that loves God.  Unrepented sin will not lead to an anxiety free life!  The pressure alone is like blowing up a balloon until it bursts in your face!  We are testing the limits of our lives by holding in and grabbing on tightly to all that we need to let go of for our good. 

“God holds nothing against you and you’re holding nothing back from him.”  David is proclaiming how to let it all go to God!  God is the God of fresh starts and restored joy.  Blessed are those who let it go, let the secrets out to Jesus who already knows and advocates for us to the Father who forgives us completely, never to remember the sin again! 

Yes, blessed indeed are those who “get it and repent it” and know the slate is clean forever when they do.  This is what God wants and how God works in our lives.  “This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. God didn’t go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again. Anyone who trusts in him is acquitted; anyone who refuses to trust him has long since been under the death sentence without knowing it. And why? Because of that person’s failure to believe in the one-of-a-kind Son of God when introduced to him.”  John 3:16-18, The Message

Jesus died for our sins, paying the debt we owed, and rose again to make redemption possible for us.  Nothing is held against us any longer.  Debt paid in full.  No more secret lies to self or to others.  No more placing blame on someone else or trying to rationalize our sin.  We just repent of it all and be made clean, washed in the blood of Jesus Christ and made whole by His saving grace!  God is a merciful God, but we must let go of all that is not of God in our lives. 

Ready for a fresh start?  Tell Jesus. 

Worship and Wisdom, Psalms and Proverbs

Psalm 32, The Message

A David Psalm

32 Count yourself lucky, how happy you must be—
    you get a fresh start,
    your slate’s wiped clean.

² Count yourself lucky—
    God holds nothing against you
    and you’re holding nothing back from him.

³ When I kept it all inside,
    my bones turned to powder,
    my words became daylong groans.

⁴ The pressure never let up;
    all the juices of my life dried up.

⁵ Then I let it all out;
    I said, “I’ll make a clean breast of my failures to God.”

Suddenly the pressure was gone—
    my guilt dissolved,
    my sin disappeared.

⁶ These things add up. Every one of us needs to pray;
    when all hell breaks loose and the dam bursts
    we’ll be on high ground, untouched.

⁷ God’s my island hideaway,
    keeps danger far from the shore,
    throws garlands of hosannas around my neck.

⁸ Let me give you some good advice;
    I’m looking you in the eye
    and giving it to you straight:

⁹ “Don’t be ornery like a horse or mule
    that needs bit and bridle
    to stay on track.”

¹⁰ God-defiers are always in trouble;
    God-affirmers find themselves loved
    every time they turn around.

¹¹ Celebrate God.
    Sing together—everyone!
    All you honest hearts, raise the roof!

TRUTH:  “Lucky” in this paraphrase is synonymous with blessed.  To be blessed is to grow in the characteristics of God.  God-affirmers find themselves loved every time they turn around. Amen!  We love God because He first loved us.

Proverb 15:10-11, The Message

It’s a school of hard knocks for those who leave God’s path,
    a dead-end street for those who hate God’s rules.

¹¹ Even hell holds no secrets from God—
    do you think he can’t read human hearts?

WISDOM:  Know God knows exactly what you think you are trying to hide! 

“But God told Samuel, “Looks aren’t everything. Don’t be impressed with his looks and stature. I’ve already eliminated him. God judges persons differently than humans do. Men and women look at the face; God looks into the heart.”

1 Samuel 16:7, The Message

Abba Father,

Who do we think we are to hold back and hold on so tightly to sins that destroy us?  You see our hearts, know our minds and want more, so much more for us because of your love.  I repent of worry, anxiety and thinking it will resolve itself.  I repent of all that offends you in me.  I ask for a fresh start today, cleansing me of all things not right for me to hold on to any longer.  Wipe the slate clean, Lord.  We don’t need to talk about this any longer for it is forgotten in your mind.  Wow, what a mighty, merciful, gracious God you are.  Thank you, dear Jesus, for saving my soul and making me whole.  Continue to transform my life to be all you created me to be and then do.  I love you with all my heart, mind and soul.  To you be the glory!  In Jesus Name, Amen!