Step Five - Confessing It All

 STEP FIVE

So, yesterday we spoke about summoning up our courage and choosing to make a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.  We work hard and think it through, and for many of us, even write things down. 

And if that wasn’t hard enough, then  Step Five requires that “We confess to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.” I mean, if we are being honest, in who of us doesn’t that set our heart quaking a bit? 

I take great comfort from these words written thousands of years ago in Psalm 32.

Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sin is put out of sight!  Yes, what joy for those whose record the Lord has cleared of guilt, whose lives are lived in complete honesty!  Psalm 32:1-2

When I refused to confess my sin, my body wasted away, and I groaned all day long. Day and night your hand of discipline was heavy on me. My strength evaporated like water in the summer heat.  Psalm 32:3-4

Finally, I confessed all my sins to you and stopped trying to hide my guilt. I said to myself, “I will confess my rebellion to the Lord.” And you forgave me! All my guilt is gone.  Psalm 32:5

It’s so easy to blame others but to take a look at our own character defects and the impact our behaviours and attitudes have had on others – now that’s just hard. And yet, over these many years of walking with people in recovery and hearing the Step 5 confession of quite a number of people, I can tell you that there is no other step that brings the relief and uplift that completing this step does.  Why is that? 

As we said yesterday, secrets are deadly and they fill us with shame.  When things are brought to the light we see them as they truly are.  They may be ugly but God receives us in our weakness in it all. When we get honest and confess, we are simply agreeing with what is true and God’s promise is that when we live in the truth, we will experience freedom.

You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.  John 8:32

Loving God, we are most truly ourselves when we live in loving relationship with You, our Heavenly Father, our Creator.  That’s how we were created to live.  Thank You for inviting us to live as “Beloved Ones” and to respond as people who know we are cherished and cared for. 

We’ve live as unloved and unloving people in our character defects for too long.  We learned coping strategies to hide our fear of being hurt and let down.  Now today, as You invite us, God, we want to let go of those strategies and enter fully into a life of love and care.

Thank You God for your promise to safely guide us on the right path that gives us joy and satisfaction.  Your heart today is to give us a life that is better than all we could ask for or even imagine.  We want that.  Amen