Most psychologists will tell you that unresolved guilt accounts for a large number of psychological and psychiatric problems. People try to deny their guilt, and they live in fear of having their sins discovered. All of us grapple with guilt. But Jesus wants to remove any guilt we feel. The Bible says that when we come to Him in faith, Jesus Christ will “cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!” (Heb. 9:14) Our God is a good and loving God. He knows all our guilt and He wants to take it away.

Not everyone can accept this, though. I was once on a call-in radio show in England. A man told me about a good friend of his from a strict religious home who had “an A-grade in guilt.” I told him that Christ comes to remove our guilt, and the host didn’t buy it. “Sorry, Luis,” he said, “That’s an easy way out, it seems to me.” He thought it sounded too easy. Well, it wasn’t easy for Christ to remove our sins, dying as our substitute on the cross. It also isn’t easy for most of us to accept that gift.

Our culture says we need to fix our own mistakes, grovel to be forgiven, and pay our penance. Jesus doesn’t want us to grovel in the dirt; he wants to lift us from the pit where we put ourselves and help us to soar. Then we can serve the living God and help change people through Jesus Christ - guilt-free and filled with joy.            

This is Luis Palau.

I hear story after story about how holding onto anger and bitterness harms not just relationships, but the actual emotional health of the person experiencing anger and bitterness. In Matthew 18, Jesus told a parable about the necessity of forgiving others. Those who refuse to forgive, he said, would only slam the door on their own prison cell. Instead, Jesus wants us to walk free in forgiveness.

A young Scottish woman made this discovery after spending several years behind emotional bars. Her father abandoned the family and took off to work in Saudi Arabia. Bitterness gripped her heart, and over time a nasty grudge against her father grew. Eventually she gave her life to Jesus, but still she refused to forgive her father. One day she learned the words of Jesus: “If you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.” She took her Lord’s words to heart and wrote a letter to her father, telling him that because of Jesus, she forgave him for walking away. To her surprise, the heartbroken old man immediately wrote a reply, asking for her forgiveness ... and asking if he could come home.

Forgiveness sets you free – and then it sets others free. Jesus wants us to live in freedom so we can help change the world for Him.            

This is Luis Palau.

We like to hear a friend say, “Just forget about it,” when we pull some boneheaded move. And very often, nothing more is required. Saying, “It’s okay. Let’s just move on,” works fine much of the time. In some cases, however, we don’t need a way to continue so much as we require a fresh start. Some patterns need to be broken, but they’ll never end if we don’t stop dead in our tracks, name them for what they are, express genuine sorrow for the pain we caused, renounce our sin, and ask for forgiveness.

Did you know repentance is the most positive word in the English language? We usually think of repentance as a sad, dark, and horrible term, when actually it’s the beginning of a new life. It’s leaving the past behind. It’s starting over. Repentance is liberating!

To repent means simply to admit the truth and to start moving in a different direction. Repentance doesn’t mean groveling in the dirt, but rather taking responsibility for our actions and saying, “Yes, I’ve sinned, I’m sorry for it, and by the power of God I intend to start behaving in a healthier way.” The book of Acts in the Bible tells us to do this by “turn[ing] to God and prov[ing our] repentance by [our] deeds.” By expressing our repentance, we can repair our relationships and find a new direction. This new direction will point the way for us to reach our world for Jesus.          

This is Luis Palau.

A powerful politician had it all – wealth, prestige, power, influence. He became the secretary of defense for a South American nation when he was 37 years old. He ran the nation’s army and directed its attacks against a powerful, notorious drug cartel. Then everything fell apart. He was accused of using drug money to finance a president’s political campaign. He landed behind bars in a military penitentiary, with no contact from the outside world.

A friend smuggled a Bible into his cell and urged him to read the book of Romans. This was the first time he had heard of Jesus Christ, and he was both intrigued and confused. When I visited the capital city, I had the chance to visit him in prison. He expressed confusion about how God could ever forgive him, given what he had done. He felt truly unworthy

I referenced the first verse of Romans 8, “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” I told him ALL of his sins could be forgiven at that very moment. He didn’t need to go and fix himself, or get his act together first. No! All he had to do was believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and accept the forgiveness being offered to him. And he did!

Imagine the freedom and joy that would sweep across this world if everyone accepted God’s forgiveness. Imagine how everything could change if people knew God wanted them just as they are. Let’s start sharing that good news everywhere.

This is Luis Palau.

As a dad, I want to provide the best life possible for my kids. I make sure they have food to eat and a safe place to sleep. My wife, Wendy, and I talk to our kids about getting good grades and studying hard. We spend as much time together as possible each day, and on vacations.  We celebrate all the special occasions together that we are able. But we both know that the number one gift we can give our children is a deep love for Jesus Christ.

In fact, a love for Jesus is the best gift you could give to anyone. Jesus offers life, and life in abundance. He provides comfort in times of struggle. He forgives us from our sins. He empowers us to change for the better. And those who have a relationship with Jesus have the great promise of eternity in Heaven. John 6:47 in the Bible says, “Truly, truly I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life.”

As you hear these promises and truths about God, consider whether your children have a relationship with Him. Are they seeing faith lived out in your life? If you haven’t yet shared your testimony with them, I encourage to do so. And whether or not you have kids even, pray about who God wants you to share His Good News with. Introducing someone to Jesus is the best gift you could possibly give.           

This is Andrew Palau.

In his book The Mystery of Children, Mike Mason reminds us that, —“Jesus wants us to become like children because our spirits lived closest to the surface during our childhood. In childhood our hearts are the most transparent, most vulnerable, most malleable. Growing up usually means covering up our spirit more and more with flesh. God wants us to become the person we really are inside, the person we were born to be. Becoming childlike involves peeling away the masks to get back to the real, rosy-cheeked, bright-eyed face beneath."

When we’re born, God makes us dependent on parents or caregivers for the first few years of our lives. In many ways, our parents represent God to us. In a perfect world, this would be a good thing. Now, let us picture when a child reaches five or six years of age. The child goes up to his parents and asks, “Mommy and Daddy, what is God like?” The parents might look at their child and say, “God is a lot like us—He is loving and kind and patient. He is proud of you and is always there when you need Him. You are a treasure to God and He loves you no matter what. He likes to spend time with you and sing over you. And out of His love, God disciplines you to help you grow.”

Imagine the wide-eyed child who hears these words. Wow! With parents like these, what child wouldn’t believe in God? God’s love for us is good news, indeed! 

This is Luis Palau.

In their book, The Missing Commandment, Jerry and Denise Basel quote an abuse survivor talking about how she sees God. She said, —“I feel like I will be the lost lamb Jesus goes trudging into the cold dark to find—when all the rest of the good little flock is safely in the barn—only to have Him shake His head at me, pick me up with a sigh, and wonder why He puts up with me. I wonder if there was ever a point in my life where He looked at me with pleasure, or was He always disappointed with me? Was it something I did? Or just who I am?”

Thankfully, the Good News of Jesus Christ tells us exactly the opposite. God so loves you and me. The Lord loves us with an everlasting love [Jeremiah 31:3]. God deeply loves you and me and the world—deeply enough to send His one and only Son, Jesus [John 3:16]. The apostle John described himself as the one whom Jesus loved [John 13:23, etc.]. Today is a great day to tell yourself, “I am the one whom Jesus loves.” It has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it? What a good change from the usual self-talk.

Anyone who has seen Jesus Christ in all of His tenderness, gentleness, compassion—in all of His intense honesty, tenacity, and righteous anger—and in all His mercy, grace, and love—has seen the Father as well. Jesus perfectly mirrors the Father, and both of them love you and me. Isn’t that wonderful good news? It sure is!                 

This is Luis Palau.

When Jesus says come to God like a little child, that’s exactly what He wants us to do! There is no virtue in being childish, but we should never outgrow our childlikeness.

As His child, God first wants us to be vulnerable, in a position of recognizing our need for His care and protection. Second, God wants us as His children to trust Him—to trust that He made us, knows us, loves us, is with us, and enjoys us. Third, God wants us to remember no child is fully developed —let alone perfect. As children of God, we are always in a process of growth, which our Father understands and accepts.

Fourth, God made us to be dependent on Him, with needs such as love, affection, acceptance, and a sense of belonging. God highly esteems dependence as a characteristic of our ongoing condition and position with Him. We never outgrow our need to lean on Him, to be weak so that He can show Himself strong on our behalf.

Fifth, children are valuable, unique, and special to God Himself. He planned for us from the beginning and knit us together in our mother’s womb. There has never been and will never be another person like you or like me. 

This last point speaks to the fact God has a specific purpose in mind for you and me. By inviting others to become children of God, we certainly fulfill that purpose and bring much glory to His name.

This is Luis Palau.

Of all the Scriptures, some of the most profound talk about coming to God like a little child. No matter how old we get, the Father still refers to us as children. He adopts us as His own, and even if we surrender our lives to God at seventy years of age, we still come as a child. After all, in our culture we adopt children—not adults—and that’s how it is with God.

Jesus was very clear on His position regarding children and the kingdom of God. Mark 10:13–16 tells us: “The people brought children to Jesus, hoping he might touch them. The disciples shooed them off. But Jesus was irate and let them know it: ‘Don’t push these children away. Don’t ever get between them and me. These children are at the very center of life in the kingdom. Mark this: Unless you accept God’s kingdom in the simplicity of a child, you’ll never get in.’ Then, gathering the children up in his arms, he laid his hands of blessing on them.”

You can almost see Jesus hold the little ones in His arms, place His hand on the head of each child, and bless each one. Notice they have done nothing to earn His love.

During His earthly ministry, Jesus said He did only what His Father was doing [John 5:19]. Furthermore, Jesus said that when we see Him, we see the Father [John 14:9]. So when Jesus says come to God like a little child, that’s exactly what we want to do.

This is Luis Palau.

When times are uncertain, many of us turn to trusted friends. God created us to be in relationship, so friends can be incredibly important. But the ultimate friend – the One who can never let us down, and the One who is always dependable - is Jesus Himself.

The Bible says we were created to be in relationship with Him. And Jesus sees us as a friend, too. The Bible says in John 15:15, “No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.”

Just like the friends we can see and talk to here on Earth, Jesus wants to be in communication with us. This happens through prayer – speaking to Him, and reading His Word – hearing from Him. It happens by remembering that He is with you always, in all circumstances.

As you go through your week, I hope you will devote more time to cultivating your relationship with Jesus. He is there. He is with you now, your ultimate Friend and Savior, Jesus.

This is Andrew Palau.