Tues.12.30.14...Forgive us our Sins...Part 3

The last two times we have focused on the powerful portion in the Lord’s prayer- “Forgive us our sins as we have forgiven those who have sinned against us.” But what if I am the one who has sinned against another? Can I claim that it’s all under the blood and ignore what I’ve done even in my B.C. days? No, we should go back to those whom we have sinned against and confess such. (I’ve had to do so.) Notice this is what the prodigal son did. He had terribly insulted his father on earth and in heaven and so he confessed, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.” Luke 15:21.

The father gave him a warm embrace and extended amazing grace. But that doesn’t mean others will when we confess our wrongdoings against them. Why? Perhaps they are hardened in heart or perhaps our confession seems insincere to them. When my boy was little and wronged his sister, we told him he needed to say he was sorry. He hated doing this, so through gritted teeth and without moving his lips, he would say, “Sorry.” So later we had him say the following, “I’m sorry; what I did was wrong. Will you please forgive me? What can I do to make it up to you?” He didn’t like saying that either, but the last questions usually prompted my daughter to extend mercy and grace to the little sinner. (Hmm, wonder where he got that sinful streak? “It was the woman you gave me”:) 

By the way, isn't it amazing how both children and adults blame other people for their sins. Or they justify it or minimize it. For example, you might hear a believer cuss while on the job. His coworkers may stick it to him a bit and say- "And you call yourself a Christian?!" To which he might say such dumb things as- "Well, you guys make me so mad!" "I didn't say, I was perfect, but I am forgiven, which is more than I can say for you guys." What should he instead say to his coworkers? "You know, you're right. Please forgive me for that." This is the right and quickest way to rebuild his testimony. 

Even after being a Christian for many years, I know confession of my wrongdoings is still tough for me to do. Yet, confession of sin is foundational for growth. Relationships with God and others suffer greatly when we brush our bad behavior under the rug. Plus, we lose respect in our own eyes and the eyes of others. Also we tend to think we will lose face if others knew we blew it. So how can we help ourselves and our proteges to get better at this vital practice of confession that we naturally shun?  If only there was a way we could commend men for having the courage to right a wrong? There is! Thanks to our daily online fellowship and our GREAT scoreboard we can help each other in ways which most offline weekly groups can never do. How? You will be rewarded for being honest. No, we don't want to create a confessional booth to hear the details of how you were rude to your wife and how you later apologized to her. Instead, simply type a letter- the letter R. The letter R stands for Repented, Reconciled, Regained my Respect. That's what the letter R stands for on our GREAT scoreboard. 

But what will my brothers think if they see that I added an extra line at the end of my comments with just the letter R appearing? 
They will Respect you! You also will be helping the team score on the board. (So the team with the most honest sinners will win that day:) Just imagine what this can do for a man's marriage? Picture a protege's wife saying to you, "My husband is not the same man he used to be. He rarely could admit his wrongs, but now he seems more motivated to do so. I don't know what's gotten into him?" I do! He is now being made to feel like a hero not a zero for admitting his wrongs. (Just now, my wife walked into my office and I confessed how I had recently been hurtful with my words. She graciously forgave me. I feel better and she feels better. Anybody want to recruit me onto your team? I might put a whole lot of points on the board for you!:) So let's normalize the fact that "we all stumble in many ways. If anyone is never at fault in what he says, he is a perfect man" Ja.3:2. If a man tells me he is never at fault in what he says, he has the fault of lying! "If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us." 1 John 1:8. So let's make heroes out of the men that have the guts to heroically tackle sin in their lives. It takes real strength and humility to do so, and God honors humility (Prov.15:33). So let's honor what God honors.   

1.-Prov.28:13 is hugely helpful in regards to confessing sin, rather than ignoring it. So please look it up and write it on your 3x5 as your MP3 (Meditation, Prayer, Praise, Pass it on). Do the “Did it” when you did it.

2.-Please comment on anything that we covered today in the blog.

From here on out, if you have humbly confessed a wrong since the last time you commented on the blog, you’ll simply add the letter R on a separate line at the bottom of your comments. I want to congratulate you in advance for doing so. I admire you! Our relationships with all people will only improve as we quickly seek to right wrongs. What a great holy habit to develop for the new year.

Announcements

Speaking of the new year, since many of you might be out late bringing in the new year, you will have all day Wednesday and Thursday to respond to the Wednesday blog. (No hangovers allowed though:) Since a lot of you might have Thursday off, I will post the test that day for you to attack. I look forward to bringing in the new year together with you. I believe God is going to give us a GREAT year together.

Please keep Jack in your prayers. He is going back under the knife tomorrow- this time for his other hand. It may take a while before he is even able to type with either hand. So Jack, you have our prayers and a medical excused absence from the blog :) We’ll miss you!

Men, you are Unstoppable!

		G=God's Word	R	E	A	T=Team members recruited
		For Fri.12.26.14
	Alpha Force	100%
	Fire Team 1
1	Jack Rogers	Y				2	Daniel & Roger
2	Daniel Contreras	Y				1	Vince
3	Vince Diaz	Y
4	Roger Vinlasaca	Y
	Fire Team 2
5	Israel Fuentes	Y
6	John Pallozzi	Y
7	Sam Vargas	Y				1	Robert
8	Robert	Welcome!
	Delta Force	100%
	Fire Team 3
1	Alvin James	Y
2	Dave Heidekruger	Y
3	Mike Pagan	Y
	Fire Team 4
4	Eddie Morales	Y				2	Gary & Ismael
5	Gary Remson	Y
6	Ismael Andrade	Y