By Andrea Goebel, God’s Way
A couple of weeks ago, as I walked by the hutch in our bedroom, I saw a fine layer of dust covering it. “I should clean that off,” I said to myself. I made a mental note to do so later and continued the task at hand.
A few days passed before I carried a can of furniture polish into the room and set it on the hutch, and a few more days passed before I actually dusted the wooden surfaces in the room. I thought it was easier to put off the chore until a later time than it was to stop what I was doing to take care of it. However, the dust continued to accumulate, and the task of wiping off the furniture took longer than it would have if I had just cleaned it as soon as I noticed it was dirty.
The concept of dealing with difficulties in the future seems more appealing than dealing with situations as they arise. Whether it’s because I don’t want to face the hard work of solving a problem or because I convince myself I don’t have time to complete all the tasks in front of me, I tend to stall on anything that causes conflict within my heart.
Whether it’s a pile of dirty dishes, a talk with one of my children or an examination of my own conscience, the more time that passes before I attend to it, the more time it takes to work through when I do eventually address it. The pile of dishes grows taller, the child’s behavior continues and my heart feels burdened by the weight of my sin.
Usually, I realize belatedly that these conflicts would not have become as overwhelming if I had taken the time to face them sooner.
Sin has that same way of creeping into our lives and creating problems that compile. We don’t always see it until it wreaks havoc in our souls, in our relationships, and in our lives.
After I dusted the bedroom furniture, I noticed a difference immediately. Everything looked cleaner and neater, and I felt relief from the absence of the accruing layers of dust in our room. I told myself I would dust it sooner next time.
What if we take the same approach with our sins and return to God before the chaos in our hearts becomes unbearable?
As a child and young adult, I viewed the Sacrament of Reconciliation as a necessary evil: I didn’t fully understand it, and I usually went only when I felt guilty about something I had done.
It was only when I attended a weekend retreat when I was well into adulthood, now a wife and mother, that I listened to someone speak about the Sacrament of Reconciliation and opened my heart to another possibility.
What if I began viewing confession as a gift God gives us to draw us closer to communion with him?
The apostle John reminds us of the need for confession and repentance: “If we say, ‘We are without sin,’ we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we acknowledge our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from every wrongdoing” (1 John 1:8-9).
Facing our human frailty is humbling, but the sooner we turn toward God and away from our sins, the sooner we open ourselves to receive His mercy and grace.
God’s gift of forgiveness is beautiful, and the Sacrament of Reconciliation offers us freedom from the burden that sin causes.
When sin enters our hearts, it separates us from God. The sooner we repent of our sins and seek his forgiveness, the sooner we grow toward union with him, right where we are meant to be.