Count yourself lucky, how happy you must be—
you get a fresh start,
your slate’s wiped clean.
Count yourself lucky—
God holds nothing against you
and you’re holding nothing back from him.
When I kept it all inside,
my bones turned to powder,
my words became daylong groans.
The pressure never let up;
all the juices of my life dried up.
Then I let it all out;
I said, “I’ll make a clean breast of my failures to God.”
Suddenly the pressure was gone—
my guilt dissolved,
my sin disappeared.
These things add up. Every one of us needs to pray;
when all hell breaks loose and the dam bursts
we’ll be on high ground, untouched.
God’s my island hideaway,
keeps danger far from the shore,
throws garlands of hosannas around my neck. ~ Psalm 32:1-7
I've been straying from the lectionary and revisiting some Bible passages I've written about before. Always good to look with fresh eyes at scripture! I thought I would look at The Message Bible for this reading. Sometimes with Psalms especially I find that The Message makes them just that much more relevant.
Today, maybe especially so. It isn't really super common these days to talk about transgressions and iniquity and the guilt of sin.
I mean, yes, we confess them in church and yes, you might read in news and other places about "other people's sins" - usually of the sexual type.
But for most of us Mainline Protestants, we don't really talk much about confessing on a day to day basis.
We don't often think of confessing to a person - much like our Roman Catholic brethren do.
But there is something wonderful about confession. Something freeing and glorious, and Eugene Peterson in The Message captures that so clearly.
Imagine getting fresh start every day. A clean slate.
Do you remember what it feels like to have pressure dissolve?
To let it all out and then feel free of it?
Confession isn't just good for the soul. It's good for the body as well. It's good for life and health. It's good for relationship. It builds trust and it creates bonds.
Might it be something freeing for you today?
Lord, let me not be afraid to confess the hurts and darkness in my heart. Show me where to turn! Amen