Relief

Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sin is put out of sight! Psalms 32:1 NLT

In the 1970s, there was a commercial on TV that asked the question, “How do you spell relief?” The answer was R-O-L-A-I-D-S! They spend 30 seconds with testimonials heralding the product and visually demonstrating how it “Consumes 47 times its weight in excess stomach acid.” Nice to know!

It’s nice to have such products on the market to give us physical relief. While there are other antacid products to help with our indigestion and heartburn, there is only one thing that can provide us with 100 percent spiritual relief: confessing our sins to Jesus and receiving forgiveness.

In verse 5, the Psalmist praises God’s fabulous healing powers.

Finally, I confessed all my sins to you

and stopped trying to hide my guilt.

I said to myself, “I will confess my rebellion to the Lord.”

And you forgave me! All my guilt is gone.

Whatever sin creates spiritual indigestion, we can take it to the Lord. We no longer have to suffer from the shame and guilt that burdens us. Jesus has already carried our sins to the cross. We only need to come before Him, confessing our rebellion, and we will receive the relief he has promised.

Father, thank you for carrying our sin to the cross. Because of what your Son did for us, we can find relief in you. Yet, we confess, often, we are hesitant to do so. Instead of humbling ourselves and asking for forgiveness, we prefer to suffer with the pain. Father, help us overcome our pride and bring all our sins to you so we may enjoy freedom from sin. We pray this in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Blessings,

Pastor Tim

PS: In fact-checking the Rolaids commercial, I discovered this song by Sammy Hall, “How Do You Spell Relief? J-E-S-U-S”