Turning Back to God

Open my lips, Lord, and my mouth will declare Your praise.
You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it;
You do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.
My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit;
A broken and contrite heart You, God, will not despise.
Psalms 51:15-17

As we as Christians walk through our lives, we need to remember that we are not perfect, nor should we judge each other.  Our purpose is to share God’s love and to mentor those who come along with us.  We are to be salt and light to the nations.

Jesus tells us,
You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet. You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.  Matthew 5:13-16

There is a time for us to review our actions and to repent once either we see it, or once someone brings it to our attention.  Either way, there is a time for us to seek to change.  Pride can so very easily prevent us from repenting, turning from our sin and beginning to respect God again.  But what happens if we continually sin, again and again, the same sin?  Peter posed this question to Jesus…

Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive
my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?”
Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.”
Matthew 18:21 and 22

Jesus then went on to say,

“Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand bags of gold was brought to him. Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt. “At this the servant fell on his knees before him. ‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay back everything.’ The servant’s master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go. “But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred silver coins. He grabbed him and began to choke him. ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ he demanded. “His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it back.’ “But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. When the other servants saw what had happened, they were outraged and went and told their master everything that had happened. “Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’ In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed. “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.” (Verses 23-35)

I am not sure about you, but I endeavor to lay my life down at the foot of the Cross and do my best not to take it up again.  But with my being humble and contrite, I can lay my sin down each and every day while I make every effort to not take it on again.

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Father, forgive me a sinner!  Forgive my weak fleshly desires.  Forgive me when I am quick to speak, before I think.  Forgive me for when I judge others before I know what their life holds.  Forgive me for not seeking You first, when I know I am supposed to.  Forgive me my pride.  Help me replace “I can do it” and instead say “with Your guidance I can do it.”  I give You the glory for each and every day.  Thank You, Lord.  In Jesus’ name, I pray, Amen.

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