Camp Devotions - Day Twenty-Two

 James 5:16 (NASB)

¹⁶  Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much. 

Many people know this verse and quote it. That is they quote the last part of the verse. Not many quote the first part of it. The first part of it makes us squirm in discomfort. Do we really want to confess our sins to one another? Are we comfortable with people really knowing the truth about is hidden in the secret chambers of our lives.  

That is exactly what happened on the campus of Howard Payne University several decades ago. College students started lining up in the auditorium openly confessing their sins before the student body in a revival service. Witnesses say students lined up deep down the aisle to confess their sins many through broken tears. That service lasted several hours into the next day. That revival spread around the nation. One of the pastors in that town came to the town where I lived. I saw people openly confessing sin in a church for myself. I am sure most of those people did not want to do so before family and friends. The Spirit of God compelled them to do so. 

How many people live in shame in the shadows? They pretend to be better than they really are. They are gripped with fear of being exposed. Satan loves to keep us hiding in the shadows of our secret sins. He also condemns us. He holds us hostage by threatening what would happen if people knew the truth. It takes raw courage to own up to the truth. 

Let me say right now I am not advocating for anyone to openly confess sins before the congregation. Jesus is our great High Priest. We confess to Him, and He forgives. We do not have to confess our sins to other people. Except for this verse today. We are told to confess our sins to one another. One is a single person. A trusted brother or sister in the Lord. Even that is not easy. 

Living in the shadows seems safe. Nobody knows the truth. We are able to keep up appearances. The trouble is we may still struggle with the same old sins. We live enslaved rather than free. We are unable to break free. We may even hate the sin that enslaves us and promise God we will never commit that trespass again. We do though. Some for months. Others for decades. Even to the point people become convinced of the lie that they will never be free. They live in condemnation and shame. 

The reason we are commanded to confess our sins to one another is so that we can be prayed for and healed. Imagine the joy and relief of not just being forgiven but being freed from chains of our evil choices. It takes courage and trust to openly confess sin to anyone. No matter how much we love and trust that person. It seems safer to hide in the shadows of secrecy. 

This may be one of the most difficult things God asks us to do. Raw courage and tremendous faith must be exercised to follow through. Once we do confess our sin to a trusted person and bring the hidden things in the light, Satan can no longer hold us hostage. Freedom and healing await available to all of God's children. May the Lord direct our steps if, when, and to whom we are to confess our sins. 

• Spend some time searching your heart for anything you need to confess before God and repent from doing.
• Ask God if He requires you to openly confess your sin to anyone. If He does lead you to do so, ask Him whom that trusted person is to be.
• Believe that God has made freedom available for you. Choose to walk in that freedom today.