Why do I always forget to repent?

I'm sorry that this post again, focuses on what separates us from God--our sin-- but it is through this term --repentance-- that we are reunited with Him.

I've often found that within my prayer time, more often than not, I forget or neglect the importance of repentance. Repentance, however is crucial to who we are as believers. Through repentance we are rejecting the sin in our lives that functions to separate us from God. We are essentially acknowledging our deviation from His will and the divide that sin has caused in dismantling us from His Spirit.

It is important to remember that as believers we are united with Jesus Christ:

"Since we have been united with Him (Jesus Christ) in His death, we will also be raised to life as he was." Romans 6:5

"Don't you realize that your bodies are actually parts of Christ? But the person who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with him. (19) Don't you realize that your body is the temple of the holy spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God?"
1 Corinthians 8:17, 19

Through Jesus Christ, God adopted us into His own family as His children. (Ephesians 1:5) In short, we are part of God's family and are united with Him in spirit. This fact says a lot about who we are and how we are to behave.

Sin, however, destroys our relationship with God. I am instantly reminded of the earthly relationships we have between friends and family. We know what makes our friends and family tick--what annoys, upsets, and angers them-- because we experience intimate relationships with these people daily and have developed a growing knowledge of their personalities. We know that acting in accordance to the things that upset them functions to fissure the delicate fabric of those relationships.

As believers in Christ, we also develop a growing knowledge of God. We learn about His righteousness and His commands for our lives. We know what He hates and what angers Him. Like our earthy relationships, acting in accordance to what he despises (through sinning) also serves to sever our relationship with Him.

"Everyone who sins is breaking God's law, for all sin is contrary to the law of God." 1 John 3:4

We show that we love our family, friends, and God by honoring them and acting in light of what makes them happy and builds them up.

"But those who obey God's word truly show how completely they love him. That is how we know we are living in Him." 1 John 5

When we REPENT, we therefore agree with God that we are sinners. "For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God's glorious standard." (Romans 3:23) We are acknowledging that we have deviated from unity with Him and initiate the basis within which we are reunited (forgiveness), as we need to repent to be forgiven.

Through repentance, we gain a clearer understanding of how we are separated from God as we are consciously acknowledging what has functioned to separate us from His will. Through this sincere act, we condemn sinful behaviour in ourselves--openly and honestly reject these actions--and reunite ourselves with God. We are consciously asking Him to take us back after we have hurt and separated ourselves from Him.

As our life in Christ is found through the forgiveness of sins, it is therefore important to ask for this forgiveness constantly.

It is IMPORTANT to remember that sin does not only hurt God, but it hurts ourselves and others. We are one with God and His creation. Thus sin has a deeper impact than we may be aware of. Repentance, therefore is extremely important.

Action Plan for Today: Be honest with yourself and God. Write down a list of ways you have deviated away from God (sin) and repent. Write a list of how your specific sins function to hurt yourself, God, and others, and ultimately serve to disrupt the unity we have between God and His creation (this includes ourselves). Take one specific sin (ex. anger) and do a short writing exercise detailing how the world would prove to be better if this sin did not exist. If you are brave, do a write-up that details what the world is like because of this sin. Compare and contrast. Pray that God will give you the strength to let go of sin and make a commitment to store up God's word in your heart to counter sinful attitudes.


I