God cares about sin with fiery passion. Sin kills. We are all doomed.

But this is not the end of the story. We are called back to God! We are called to repent! To turn around from our sinful ways. To turn back to God and embrace his ways. Because God has better things in store for us. God has prepared a path back to his presence in Christ Jesus. Because of Jesus we can by repenting our sins be made right with God and enter his presence. But because God hates sin with fiery passion we need to confess our sins and repent. By repenting we get rid of anything and everything that hinders our ability to surrender to God and God to dwell in us.

It is the only way to prepare our hearts for the Sacred to enter. It is the only way to prepare our hearts to enjoy God’s presence. It is the only way to prepare our hearts for the joy of salvation.

So get yourselves together. Shape up!
You’re a nation without a clue about what it wants.
Do it before you’re blown away
like leaves in a windstorm,
Before God’s Judgment-anger
sweeps down on you,
Before God’s Judgment Day wrath
descends with full force.

Seek God, all you quietly disciplined people
who live by God’s justice.
Seek God’s right ways. Seek a quiet and disciplined life.
Perhaps you’ll be hidden on the Day of God’s anger.
(Zephaniah 2:1-3, MSG)

If the purpose of Lent is to prepare our hearts for the Sacred by repenting how do we actually do it? By the grace of God we humble ourselves and do a throughout housecleaning in our souls by repenting our sins.

By grace we get courage to repent.
By grace we get desire to repent.
By grace we are led to pray, acknowledge our sins and bring them to Jesus.
By grace we ask for forgiveness.
By grace we are cleansed with the blood of Christ.

Some of our sins we are able to recognize and admit pretty quickly. In order to see our hidden sins we need to dwell in God’s word and see ourselves in the light of it. We need to pray that God would show us what things in our lives need to be repented. Sometimes we do anything to not to see our sins. But lent is a great time to do a through housecleaning in our souls, to find the hidden dust in our lives.

My experience of repentance is that there is no sweeter place in the world than at the foot of the cross. Grace is wild but gentle. God is holy but loving, healing, and caring. Surrendering to Jesus is the best thing we can ever do. Entering God’s presence is the best life can offer. Dwelling in God is the best experience we can ever get.

 

Gracious God,
We come to you with our known and unknown sins.
Show us what our hidden sins are.
Give us your grace to repent.
Forgive us our sins!
Cleanse us squeaky-clean.
Prepare our hearts for you.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen

Be blessed, my fellow pilgrim, on your lenten journey. Be bold, repent and ready your heart for the Sacred!

Q4U: What are your experiences of repentance?

Photo courtesy of Nathan Wright