FRIDAY 11 NOVEMBER - DON'T WAIT TO CONFESS!

Nehemiah 9:3 NLT

They remained standing in place for three hours while the Book of the Law of the Lord their God was read aloud to them. Then for three more hours they confessed their sins and worshiped the Lord their God.

Read Nehemiah 9:1-38. Which do you find the most difficult? To confess to something you did years ago? Or to confess to something you’ve just done?

There is no right answer! Sometimes, it’s easier to confess something you did ages ago, because somehow the lack of immediacy takes the emotion out of it. Confessing to something you’ve just done is sometimes more difficult because our pride gets in the way.

Nehemiah and the people of God found one particular difficulty with waiting to confess their sins: there were a lot to confess! In Nehemiah 8 they had spent six hours listening to the Book of the Law and confessing their sins. Then later in the month - in Nehemiah 9 - they spent another three hours listening to the Book of the Law and confessing more sins! They had let their sins pile up in their lives over many generations and therefore had many to confess before God.

You don’t let rubbish pile up in your home. So don’t let sin pile up in your heart either! Take the rubbish out of your heart on a daily basis by examining yourself before God every day and confessing any sins he brings to mind.

God will never get bored of your confessions. He never tires of forgiving you - even for the same sins over and over again. God doesn’t criticise you. He blesses you with love, grace and mercy.

If you stumble, confess that straight away to God. He will forgive you and help you grow away from what makes you stumble. Don’t let the rubbish pile up!

THINK IT OVER

Think about the following:

In what way are you struggling with sin today? Take a moment to confess it to God and make a clean start.