Thoughts from daily Bible reading for today – April 13, 2015
Confess your sins to each other. James 5:16… If your brother or sister sins against you, rebuke them; and if they repent, forgive them. Luke 17:3
From time to time my confession and repentance of sin become rote—my soul is not fully engaged. In doing so I lose my genuine awe of God and respect for the people I love. I get distracted doing life and fail to truly fear the One who gave me life. I rush through an apology with my wife without taking the time to unpack how I bruised her spirit or hurt her heart. True confession and repentance take undivided focus and attention to detail. Cleansing my soiled soul is not passive. Active contrition defines its offense and asks the offender for forgiveness.
Yes, we ask our heavenly Father for forgiveness, but we must also ask fellow human beings for forgiveness. Confession is good for the soul. Confession is also good for growing healthy relationships. Without confession, repentance and forgiveness, we ignore intimacy. We just use each other to get our way with little concern for the other’s cares. We intensify and prolong pain without pronouncing the seriousness of our sin and our need for relational repair. We show our sincere love when we take responsibility for our hurtful actions and commit to change.
“Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper, but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy” (Proverbs 28:13).
Confession has a clear path of effectiveness. The first step is to admit your sin to yourself, the Lord and the one you offended. Don’t say, “If I offended you.” Instead own your offense and say, “Please forgive me for my angry outburst and harsh words.” Next acknowledge how it hurt your friend/spouse. “I know I hurt and disrespected you. I am truly sorry. In the future I plan to process my negative feelings with God and you before they escalate to sinful expressions.” Ask if any of your other actions caused pain. Patiently listen and respond empathetically.
Conclude by acknowledging, “I understand it will take time to heal and regain your trust. I love you and I want us to grow together in understanding and intimacy.” Confession and forgiveness are the Lord’s remedy for relational repair. Not only do we seek healing with fellow human beings, but we also come clean with Christ. Confession accelerates forgiveness. Humility helps us keep short accounts with others and with our heavenly Father. Confess, repent and trust the Lord to bring relational wholeness. Our need for forgiveness keeps our faith fresh and fiery!
“Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me” (Psalm 51:10).
Prayer: Heavenly Father create in me a clean heart. Give me the humility to confess my sins.
Related Readings: Psalm 32:5, 51:1-17; Luke 17:4; 1 Peter 5:6-7; 1 John 1:9
Post/Tweet this today: Confession and repentance are the Lord’s remedy for relational repair. #confessandforgive #wisdomhunters
Additional Resource: 3 minute music video- Matt Maher: Lord I Need You
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I tried 3 times to order your book today and it refuses my Discovercard
even though your site says takes Discovercard.
I am disappointed…
Thanks,
Dottie
Dear Dottie,
I am so sorry that you are having problems with our site. I will email you from gwynne@wisdomhunters.com and you can order the books you want from me.
I apologize about any inconvenience you have had to deal with and appreciate your patience. I will email you this morning.
We are so thankful for you. Have a wonderful morning!
Blessings,
Gwynne
Hi, my name is James Barry and am currently homeless and in a Mental Health Facility where I am prescribed Medication and Psychiatric care. I read your Wisdom Hunters Devotionals daily and thank you. Being indigent, I am unable to assist monetary funds. I am currently awaiting a hearing in front of a Judge as I have a pending disability and am nervous and scared as I do not want to be back in the streets. God Bless you all.
Dear James,
Thank you for contacting us. We are thankful that you are being blessed by the devotionals and want you to know, James, the Wisdom Hunter’s staff will be praying for you in the days and weeks ahead. God is right there with you ,James, just call out His Name and hold onto His Promises.
“Fear Not, for I have redeemed you;
I have summoned you by name and you are mine.”
Isaiah 43:1
Please let us know how you are doing and we will continue to lift you up to our Heavenly Father. You can email me at gwynne@wisdomhunters.com.
Blessings,
Gwynne
“So do not fear, for I am with you;
do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you;
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”
Isaiah 41:10
We would love to translate these devotionals into Latin American Spanish and Brazilian Portuguese. We can now caption or dub your videos also into these languages. Our translators live and work in the target language countries and in the US. See some of our recent projects here http://www.logossti.com/ministries.html Bless you, brother Boyd and your team at Wisdom Hunters!
Dear John,
Thank you so much for contacting us. I will pass along all of your information to Boyd and the Wisdom Hunter’s team. We are grateful that you thought of us and the ministry.
In the meantime, I hope you will continue to be blessed by the Wisdom Hunter’s devotionals. In this season of thankfulness and celebration of our Lord, we want you to know we are thankful for you.
Joy to the World,
Gwynne
“Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good.
His love endures forever.”
Psalm 136:1
Hello thank you very helpful and God our father is great and amazing and so is His son Jesus
Why am I not receiving any Wisdom devotionals everyday? I have been getting them since 2012 and now nothing.
I do miss them and need them.
Dear Nita,
Thank you so much for letting us know. We are sorry that you have stopped getting the devotionals. We had a temporary technical issue with our internet provider that is being worked out and you should be receiving them in the next day or two. I will go ahead and re-subscribe your email address to make sure.
If you would like to read any of the devotionals that you may have missed, please go to our website https://www.wisdomhunters.com and you can read any past devotionals.
We are sorry about this inconvenience and are grateful for your understanding and patience.
Thank you for being a part of the Wisdom Hunter’s family.
Blessings,
Gwynne
Please let me know if you do not start receiving them, OK?
“Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”
1 Thessalonians 5: 16-18
Thank you for being there every day. You always put word pictures together so beautifully. Your messages always bring me in prayer to God, and for that I am eternally grateful! God bless you with all you need to continue your ministry and even grow it. Thank you , Thank you.
Dear Diana,
Thank you so much for your kind and encouraging words. We love hearing from our Wisdom Hunter’s readers when they have been blessed by one of the devotionals. We give all the glory to God!
We are so thankful that you are a fellow wisdom hunter and we look forward to hearing from you again sometime.
May God bless you,
Gwynne
“Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
Tried to donate and donation page has a problem. Shaking so much I can’t read it.
Hi Dan,
Thank you for attempting to donate to the Wisdom Hunter’s ministry. I am sending you an email from gwynne@wisdomhunters.com to try and help you further with the process. I am not sure exactly what the problem is but we will certainly work on it with you.
Thank you again for your kindness and generosity.
We are thankful that you are a fellow wisdom hunter.
Blessings,
Gwynne