READ: PSALMS 32; 51; ISAIAH 1:16-18; 1 PETER 2:23-25

I don’t know about you, but I love wearing freshly washed clothes. Especially when it’s cold outside and the clothes are still warm right after they come out of the dryer! Having clean clothes just makes me feel more comfortable and confident.

But imagine this: you wear your favorite shirt to a restaurant, and then you accidentally spill a bit of food on it. You should wash it as soon as you get home, right? But imagine that instead of doing that, you decide to pretend the spill isn’t there, and you put off washing it. Instead, you keep wearing it. Day after day goes by, and the shirt just keeps getting filthier and filthier. Before you know it, the shirt is a total mess!

It can be the same way with sin. We all sin many times a day in our thoughts, our words, and our actions. We can either bring our sin to God, or we can try to cover it up or pretend it’s not there. If we ignore our sin day after day and keep making choices that go against God and His good ways, then before you know it, we’ve created quite a mess.

I don’t know why we often feel the need to hide from God. He already knows our every thought, our every motive, and our every desire. And no matter how badly we mess up, He still loves us and cares for us. We don’t ever have to be afraid to admit our sins to God because He has already made the way for us to be forgiven. Confessing our sins is like letting God clean our clothes. Because Jesus took all our sin upon Himself on the cross, we can be clothed in His forgiveness. • Elizabeth Blanton

• Have you ever tried to hide anything from God? In Psalm 32, David felt terrible when he kept silent about his sin. But when he confessed it to God, he experienced the joy of forgiveness. Have you ever experienced the joy of God’s forgiveness? What was that like?

• When Jesus died on the cross, He took all our sin upon Himself. And when He rose from the grave, He defeated sin and death. So now, if we’ve put our trust in Jesus, we are totally righteous and pure in God’s sight. And when Jesus returns, we won’t struggle with sin anymore. But until that day, God calls us to confess our sin to Him often. While it’s impossible to confess every single sin, it’s good to take time to remember Jesus’s sacrifice for us and the power He gives us to turn away from sin and back toward Him (Psalm 19:12-14). Consider taking a moment to confess any sins that come to mind and thank God for His grace.

Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. Psalm 51:2 (NIV)