We often feel under pressure to appear to be the perfect Christian at church, at school/college/uni, or at work. Others almost seem to be watching and waiting for us to make a mistake so they can speedily point out that we’re no better than them. And we’re not. We all make mistakes. We all have things we’re not proud of and things we want to hide. So we try to put on a public face and personality that makes us look good and disguises all our flaws and mistakes. But Jesus said: ‘You can’t hide behind a religious mask forever; sooner or later the mask will slip and your true face will be known’ (Luke 12:3 MSG). God already knows the worst about us. But that doesn’t stop Him from wanting us to come to Him, because he can also see the best in us. He sees the potential we have, and He can help us draw it out and reach that potential. But until we acknowledge and confess the things we’ve done wrong and ask for forgiveness, our relationship with God isn’t quite right. Have you ever kept something from your parents? Even though they still love you, it can feel as if there’s a kind of barrier between you. The thing you’ve done wrong weighs on your mind and affects your relationship with them. It’s the same when we don’t confess to God. It can feel like there’s a barrier there, preventing us from being completely open with Him. So to restore that relationship, we need to open up to Him and bring our sins from the darkness and into the light where God can then help us to work on those areas and reach the potential He sees in us.

What now?

Is there anything you haven’t confessed to God yet? Tell Him about it as soon as possible, so that you can be completely open to Him.