Devotional Thoughts of the Day:

Psalm 32:1-7 (NLT) ¹

When I refused to confess my sin, my body wasted away, and I groaned all day long. ⁴  Day and night your hand of discipline was heavy on me. My strength evaporated like water in the summer heat. Interlude ⁵  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. Interlude ⁶  Therefore, let all the godly pray to you while there is still time, that they may not drown in the floodwaters of judgment. ⁷  For you are my hiding place; you protect me from trouble. You surround me with songs of victory.

 253         That sick person, consumed by a zeal for souls, said: sometimes the body protests a little and complains, but I also try to transform “those moans” into smiles, because then they become very effective. (1)

A lot of people out there are paralyzed, not physically, but spiritually.  Simply put, they know what they want to do,  They have no strength to do that which they want to accomplish, they can’t escape the pain and the brokenness of their lives. They say they are believers, that they are Christians, they even may sit in church this morning. They may even say they have a zeal for souls, and give money to missions…

But can they love their neighbor?

Can they forgive their family?

Can they reach out, even as St. Josemaria describes, in their physical weakness?

Can they sacrifice themselves, so that they desire to see others know Christ can be fulfilled?

How much of their spiritual weakness comes from not dealing with their own sin, as the quote from the psalms describes?  How much of it comes from hiding their guilt?

Why can’t they just suck it up, and turn to God, knowing His promises, knowing His love, knowing He has promised that He will forgive?

I am presently on a elders retreat – and it is amazing, as each leads a devotion, as we do our impromptu Bible Studies (go find a passage – and explain what it says to you) The theme for the retreat is that we are “sent”.  But each section has shown us not that we are… but that we are sent from the place where God deals with our sin, with our brokenness, our pains.

It is from that place –quickened by the ministry of the Holy Spirit, made alive in Christ, freed from sin and delivered into a place full of joy and peace, that we find ourselves ministering to others without thought, serving others, sharing with others, with everyone, the glory of God in which we live.

So suck it up ( a phrase that was often used in past retreats – but the elder who used it has moved south) go to the Father… confess your sins… and go from there… and know He is God.

AMEN
(1)                Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). Furrow (Kindle Locations 1241-1243). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.