Dear Faith Family,
The first turn in our Lenten journey, as we discovered on Sunday in Psalm 32, is a tough one. We round the corner and find that we are face-to-face with...ourselves. And not the prepared-for-the-day, dolled-up, slicked-out "Insta" self, but the self we'd prefer never garner anyone's attention.
Whether out of shame or self-righteousness, because we are too distracted to look, or too wounded, too angry, too entitled, or too overwhelmed; when life feels painful or off, our instinct is to wrestle with the people, circumstances, and forces around us before facing ourself. The first of our Psalms of Lent, Psalm 6, assumed that this would be our initial response and, without condemnation of any sort, invited us to open up about our wrestles.
Perhaps the only way to prepare for the inward turn of Psalm 32 is to know that God is for us, overcoming all that is opposed to our life whole and forever,
My requests have all been granted, my prayers are answered. Cowards, my enemies disappear. Disgraced, they turn tail and run. (Psalm 6:9-10)
Knowing God's got all the "stuff" around us covered, we can be open and honest with ourselves and our contributions to the fractures we feel.
Then I let it all out; I said, 'I’ll come clean about my failures to God.' Suddenly the pressure was gone—my guilt dissolved, my sin disappeared. (Psalm 32:5)
The journey of Lent leads us straight into the truth, "If we claim that we’re free of sin, we’re only fooling ourselves" (1 John 1:8). And Lent's sure and scheduled end at Good Friday and Easter Sunday remind us that there is no more secure place to be, than being utterly vulnerable before God and with one another,
But if we walk in the light, God himself being the light, we also experience a shared life with one another, as the sacrificed blood of Jesus, God’s Son, cleanses all our sin. (1 John 1:7)
As you (and me) pray Psalm 32 this week, may the Spirit lead us into honest, open, and transforming fellowship, even with those we wrestle with.
Love you, faith family! God bless.