Admitting What's Wrong (3)
Wednesday October 26, 2016
Once we’ve admitted to God what’s wrong, why must we share these details with someone else?
Most of us would declare that without a fearless admission of our defects to another human being we could not stay sober. It seems plain that the grace of God will not enter to expel our destructive obsessions until we are willing to try this. (Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, p. 56)
Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results. (James 5:16 NLT)
When we confess the exact nature of our wrongs, the terrible isolation we've lived with for most of our lives will be exposed. Many of us went down destructive paths because we felt we didn't belong, and we weren't understood or cared about. We thought our substance of choice helped us to fit in, but in fact, it simply led us down paths where we neither understood nor cared about ourselves or anyone else.
We've been rationalizing bad behaviour and giving ourselves reasons for its continuance for more years than we realize. Admitting the exact nature of our wrongs to a trusted person helps us break down the barriers that have stood against acceptance, forgiveness, and understanding. None of us is perfect. We have much to offer one another if we will approach each other with the attitude of humility and grace.
Instead, be kind to each other, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you. Dear brothers and sisters, if another believer is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path. And be careful not to fall into the same temptation yourself. Share each other’s burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ. (Ephesians 4:32, Galatians 6:1-2 NLT)
Bringing our admission of character defects before another human being helps get us past our self-pity and self-deception. We become willing to admit we need help and receive help from others. This is God’s way of life for us in relationship with Him and others. We will experience blessing and freedom when we begin to live this way.
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