Personal confessions

1 John 1:1-10

         Yesterday I wrote about our need to grow the gift of faith we have been given.  As part of that I used the analogy of how we are constatntly reassessing our speech through our hearing. Let us focus on  reassement. 

         I am one who does not see everything as black or white. I have done many things in my life that I should not be proud of. They would be considered wrong by someone who adheres strictly to the law. Perhaps I am going to go to hell in a hand basket. But I see the journey to wholeness that I am on. It is not made with all forward steps and it is not made with steps in a straight line. It is a journey after all and I am not perfect. We search our way the best we can. 

         This could be viewed as diminishing the mistakes I have made. Nothing could be further from the truth.  There is a process of reassessment that we all go through, whether by hearing for speech, or self reflection and confession for our faith.  Our sins should not be ones that cripple us or condemn us for one action. This does not make light of things we have done. It requires us to take long hards looks at the way we act and why we act that way. It requires some soul searching and solid personal growth. Beacuse I beleive that God created me as a good and beautiful being, one of his finest (we are all masterpieces!), and because I believe he died for me and because I beleive in his mercy, love and forgiveness, I can accept forgiveness for my mis steps. My sins do not cripple me as long as I evaluate and admit to those sins to myself and God. 

        If sinning is a turning away from God, not admitting to them, not evaluating them, not doing that solid soul searching is taking you further away from God. If we are to grow as people, grow in understanding and grow in our relationship with our creator, we cannot simply dismiss our mistakes, our sins. But we can dismiss them after we take a good hard look at them.

        Forgiveness is what Jesus died on the cross for. God's love and mercy are boundless. If we are to accept that most gracious of gifts, we must actively participate in the process.

          

We declare to you what was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the word of life— this life was revealed, and we have seen it and testify to it, and declare to you the eternal life that was with the Father and was revealed to us— we declare to you what we have seen and heard so that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. We are writing these things so that our joy may be complete.

This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light and in him there is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with him while we are walking in darkness, we lie and do not do what is true; but if we walk in the light as he himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.