Confess Your Sins

                If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives. My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world. (I John 1:8-2:2) 

          Sin is a “four-letter word. In fact, you can use variations on lots of four-letter words and people won’t blink an eye, but say that something is a sin, or that someone has sinned, and you’ve committed an unforgivable sin, unless the sin of which you’re accusing them involves obvious harm to someone (pedophiles, animal abusers, child abusers, rapists, mass shooters… OK those are sinners.) Anything less is too trivial to be considered, or the person’s good deeds will balance their karma… except that karma is not a Biblical concept.
         There is something empowering about admitting the truth. Perhaps that’s why admitting that one is a(n) ___________ and powerless against __________ is the first step in Twelve Step programs. I discovered this secret outside of such a program, years ago when I lost a lot of weight that I have since regained. I discovered that when I admitted that I was fat, it freed me to work on the problem. Unfortunately, I’m fat again, and now I’m older so my body isn’t coping as well as it did before. 
         Self-deception is so easy. For a long time, it seemed like I could eat that little bit extra, until it caught up with me. Oh well, that’s OK, it’s just a little weight. My job changed, my dog got older, I got older, my activity level decreased, I got bored and put food in my mouth as the solution. None of it is my fault, or, I’ll do better tomorrow, or some other such nonsense. Self-deception separates us from reality, and us from ourselves.
         And it never stays there. Sin, in general, separates. I no longer want to go places because people will see the results of my sin. Please don’t try to convince me it doesn’t matter -  I’m not telling you this because I want sympathy, or even commiseration. I’m saying it because it illustrates truth. When we refuse to acknowledge our sin, or refuse to recognize the gravity of it, we then have to tell ourselves other lies, and others still more lies. It doesn’t lie dormant. It grows.  When we expect the universe to change, to accommodate our sins, we grow weaker. Your sin may not involve food, but it’s there.
         One last thing. Confession isn’t about Truth or Dare type secrets. Confession isn’t saying, “Yeah, I do that, but it doesn’t matter,” or, “I was born this way.” Confession means to agree with someone that these things are as bad as they are, and that we are as helpless as we are, and that we are sinners – and understanding the gravity of that statement.