How To Ruin Your Life (And How To Come Back) 5-Day DevotionalSample

Day 4: Confession (Psalm 51)

If you want to ruin your life, you now have a roadmap: isolate yourself, ignore your boredom, and believe in yourself. But if you want to start over . . . 

There is good news. God is eager to forgive. No matter how great your sin is, His grace is greater. Wondering if there is enough forgiveness for your sin is like a child wondering if there is enough water in the ocean to fill his sippy cup. No matter how much you feel you have ruined your life, you have not out-sinned God’s grace. If you will come to Him, He will receive you. If you will glance toward Him, He will run to you just as the father, in a story Jesus told, ran to his wayward son and kissed and clothed him before throwing a party. More than you want to be forgiven, He wants to forgive. More than you want to come home to Him, He wants you home. If you can’t walk, crawl. He will receive you and shower you with His mercy and love. 

David paints a beautiful picture of this crawling back to the mercy and love of God in Psalm 51. He wrote the psalm after his implosion, after he had ruined his life. He recognized his sin and he recognized what he needed. Ultimately, David didn’t need help managing his lust; he didn’t need help with his self control. The root of all David’s problems was his heart, and he realized it. Thus, he prayed for a new, clean heart.

This is what we all need. The only cure for our sin sickness is a new heart. If you are not yet a follower of Christ, you don’t need to turn over a new leaf; you need a new heart. Ask God to give you one and He will. If you are a follower of Christ, confess your sins to Him again. Turn to Him in faith and trust that He will finish the good work He started—making you new. 

What unconfessed sin to you need to take to God right now? What big, scary sin are you afraid He won’t forgive?