Four Steps to Joy Posted: As you read the daily devotional today, you join MILLIONS of people in 100 countries, praying in 35 languages doing just the same! Your gifts help us distribute a message of hope around the globe! Read 1 John 1:8-10 The Lord . . . is patient with you, not wanting any to perish, but all to come to repentance. — 2 Peter 3:9 (NRSV) Todays Devotional I am an old man, soon to be 87. I’ve been a baptized Christian for over 60 years. In my daily devotions, I ask God to help me grow in my relationship with Christ. There are four steps I take to grow in my faith: awareness, confession, repentance, and acceptance of forgiveness. Following these actions has brought me joy. First, I became aware of a mental and emotional sin I had lived with so long that it no longer stood out in my spiritual inventory. I was somewhat shocked that I hadn’t dealt with it sooner. But after mulling over this troubling situation, I realized that I must confess it to God — which I did. After I had confessed it to God in prayer, I realized that I had to reject this old mental and emotional sin. So I repented, resolved to turn around 180 degrees in my mental and emotional behavior. Then I asked God to help me keep true to my new commitment. Even though I believed that God had forgiven me, I had to accept that forgiveness as an expression of God’s love and grace. Slowly letting go of the past, I was filled with joy. Thank God! Fred Cloud (Tennessee, USA) Thought for the Day: When we confess and repent, God is eager to forgive our sins. Prayer: Open our eyes, O God, to any persistent sin of which we are not aware. Help us to confess that sin, repent, and accept your forgiveness. Amen. Prayer Focus: Someone struggling to accept forgiveness
Posted on: Mon, 27 Jan 2014 12:07:09 +0000
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