The Weighty Matter of Sin

I stood in the bathroom, taking deep breaths and mentally preparing myself for what was to come. It had been months since I'd last checked my weight, and I'll admit, I'd been avoiding this moment like a cat avoids bath time. But today was the day. I'd finally mustered enough courage to face the music—or, in this case, the numbers.

"It can't be that bad," I whispered, trying to channel positive thoughts. "I've been eating...somewhat sensibly. And I do walk every day.  Well, almost every day."

Closing my eyes, I stepped onto the scale. The moment of truth had arrived. I counted to three, opened my eyes, and...promptly wished I hadn't.

"That can't be right!" I exclaimed, causing poor Tess to jump. "There must be something wrong with this scale. Perhaps it needs new batteries. Or maybe it's possessed!"

But deep down, I knew the truth. Those extra biscuits with tea, the comfort food during stressful ministry days, and my distinct lack of exercise had finally caught up with me. The weight hadn't appeared overnight—it had crept up gradually, ounce by ounce, pound by pound, until suddenly, here I was, facing numbers I had never seen before.

As I stood there, contemplating whether to throw the scale out the window (kidding...mostly), the Lord brought to mind a spiritual parallel. Just as weight can accumulate gradually when we're not paying attention, so too can sin pile up in our lives when we're not regularly bringing it before the Lord.

The Bible tells us, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9). Notice it doesn't say, "If we confess our sins once a month" or "If we wait until we have a proper pile of sins to deal with."

Those little white lies, moments of impatience, unkind thoughts, or instances of pride might seem insignificant at the moment, but left unconfessed, they create distance between God and us. Like my gradual weight gain, sin can accumulate so subtly that we hardly notice until suddenly we're carrying a heavy burden that affects our spiritual health and our relationship with the Lord.

Just as I need to regularly step on that scale (however daunting it might be) to maintain physical health, we need to regularly examine our hearts and confess our sins to maintain spiritual health. Daily confession keeps our relationship with God current and close, preventing the buildup of sin that can weigh down our spirits and hinder our walk with Him.

So today, while I'm planning to address these extra pounds (Heaven, help me!), I'm also recommitting to daily confession and spiritual accountability. After all, a healthy relationship with God is worth far more than any number on a scale.  Plus, a healthy relationship with God doesn't require us to give up the chocolate cake!