From the reality of knowing our lives, the only place to turn is God. From an awareness of where we are, we can come to him and know his forgiveness, his safety, his strength.
How amazing it is
to know God’s forgiveness,
to know that the things we have got wrong
are wiped away,
cleaned down
by him.
We can tell him it all,
and it is done with.
Running away,
hiding,
trying to pretend
does us no good.
It saps energy,
weighs heavily
and we have to live with the truth.
Telling God
lifts the heavy weight,
takes away that grubby feeling
and protects us from doing it again.
May I not be afraid,
to look at my life,
consider its reality,
and bring it to God;
for only in that
comes the possibility
of a new way,a new hope,
a resting place in you.
Psalm 32 (CEV)
(A special psalm by David.)
The Joy of Forgiveness
32 Our God, you bless everyone
whose sins you forgive
and wipe away.
2 You bless them by saying,
“You told me your sins,
without trying to hide them,
and now I forgive you.”
3 Before I confessed my sins,
my bones felt limp,
and I groaned all day long.
4 Night and day your hand
weighed heavily on me,
and my strength was gone
as in the summer heat.
5 So I confessed my sins
and told them all to you.
I said, “I’ll tell the Lord
each one of my sins.”
Then you forgave me
and took away my guilt.
6 We worship you, Lord,
and we should always pray
whenever we find out
that we have sinned.
Then we won’t be swept away
by a raging flood.
7 You are my hiding place!
You protect me from trouble,
and you put songs in my heart
because you have saved me.
8 You said to me,
“I will point out the road
that you should follow.
I will be your teacher
and watch over you.
9 Don’t be stupid
like horses and mules
that must be led with ropes
to make them obey.”
10 All kinds of troubles
will strike the wicked,
but your kindness shields those
who trust you, Lord.
11 And so your good people
should celebrate and shout.
