Remembering my past sins

As Christians, we know that God is faithful to forgive us and cleanse us of our sins. We only need to confess them to God (see 1 John 1:9 and Psalm 86:5). But sometimes we can be lax about confessing specific sins that we’ve committed.

I found this to be true in my own life. Although I’ve been diligent about asking for forgiveness for new sins as I became aware of them, I had never confessed all the sins of my past. Sins that I had committed decades ago but never specifically confessed to the Lord kept coming to mind and it was making me very uneasy. In retrospect, it was as if God was flashing a neon sign in my mind that said, “Hey remember these? Is there something you’d like to say to me?”.

Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven,
Whose sin is covered.
Psalm 32:1 (NKJV)

This occurred regularly for a long time (yes, I can be dense) until it finally occurred to me that I needed to confess those specific sins. I had always thought that a blanket prayer that went something like “God, please forgive all my sins” would be enough. But, what I discovered was that I stopped remembering my past sins after I confessed each one specifically and asked for God’s forgiveness.

This has given me a sense of peace that I’ve never experienced before.

If you’re having a similar experience where you keep remembering sins from your past (even if they go back decades), I hope that you’ll confess them and ask for forgiveness as you remember them so that you too can experience the peace that comes with being right with God.

He who covers his sins will not prosper,
But whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy.
Proverbs 28:13 (NKJV)

One final thought is that if you want God to forgive you, then you also need to forgive others of their trespasses against you. I know that this can be very difficult but keep in mind that it’s not optional. Scripture makes it clear that it’s mandatory.

And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses. But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.
Mark 11:25-26 (NKJV)

May God bless you and keep you. May the Lord shine his face upon you.

Your brother in Christ Jesus,
Daniel

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