Forgiveness

Psalm 32
Of David. A maskil. [a]
1 Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.
2 Blessed is the man whose sin the LORD does not count against him and in whose spirit is no deceit.
3 When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long.
4 For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer.
5 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.


This is the same verse as my verse of the week above just a different version. I have physically been struggling with my sin the last few weeks and when I read this verse my uncontrolled reaction was to cry tears of joy and frustration. How can God keep forgiving me? Won't he ever get sick of my lack of discipline, my stubbornness, my pride over the same issues in my life? NO! He will forgive me over and over and over again. That makes me sob with gratitude to the Lord of my life. I am waste with out His forgiveness and I am stagnant with out the Holy Spirit to change my life. As frustrating as it can be to feel the constant struggle of sin in my life Ive been noticing something else lately. When I am sinning, hanging on to my sin, being stubborn and not forgiving others, I physically feel week, tired, easily irritated, and even angry. As I read the above passage today I felt as if it were food for my soul...God shining light on my struggles. Painful to take? Very much so. But a burden lifted at the same time. God wants me to ask for forgiveness so that He can wipe my slate clean....even if this is every day, every hour, every minute! Hard to believe, I know. But His word says so and I believe everything He says to be true. So my conclusion for the day is this

Stubbornness & Pride (or not asking for forgiveness)= my bones waisting away, groaning all day long, & my strength sapped out of me day & night

OR

Asking for Forgiveness= Blessings because my sins are washed away.


I love this old hymn that ties into this passage:

Not what these hands have done can save this guilty soul;
Not what this toiling flesh has borne can make my spirit whole.
Thy work alone, O Christ, can ease this weight of sin;
Thy blood alone, O Lamb of God, can give me peace within.


Thank you Lord, for forgiving me over and over again when I don't deserve it. And thank you for your promises that encourage me to believe that You and You alone can change me, that you can make me who You want me to be. Amen.