Strength in confession

Evening Devotion December 9th     Psalm 32:1-7

Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. ^Blessed is the man whose sin the LORD does not count against him and in whose spirit is no deceit. ^

When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. ^For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer. 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.

Therefore let everyone who is godly pray to you while you may be found; surely when the mighty waters rise, they will not reach him. ^You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance.  The Holy Bible : New International Version. 1984. Grand Rapids: Zondervan.

Confession has become a forgotten word, a forgotten work. But there is power in confessing our sins and failures. Naming them helps us to conquer them. Like the Alcoholics Anonymous confession, “Hi, my name is …. I am an alcoholic”.

When I speak to people about confessing their sins, nearly everyone professes it as part of their life – but I wonder. I know a man who does confess his sins every day, each morning and each evening. He names them before God, he weeps at his failures and he cries out for strength to overcome. And this is the most Godly man that I know – and the strongest. Twice he has asked me to be his Confessor – I have never been more embarrassed, more broken and more uplifted than those two times. To hear a really strong, confident man speak of his failure is quite a thing. But, it makes him strong, because he finds his strength in the Lord, not in his own quasi-perfection. He may well be an exception but I don’t see that kind of regularly renewed strength in others who profess to confess.

BLESSED is the one who is forgiven – He who keeps silent wastes away. BLESSED is the one who acknowledges his sin – He will be kept safe from trouble and will be surrounded by songs of deliverance.

Take a moment now to bow your head before the Lord. Open your heart, your deepest place – acknowledge where you have failed, ask for forgiveness and seek God’s strength to be stong.