September 5
Scripture focus: Are you hurting? Pray. Do you feel great? Sing. Are you sick? Call the church leaders together to pray and anoint you with oil in the name of the Master. Believing-prayer will heal you, and Jesus will put you on your feet. And if you've sinned, you'll be forgiven--healed inside and out. Make this your common practice: Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you can live together whole and healed. The prayer of a person living right with God is something powerful to be reckoned with. James 5:13-17 (The Message)
We are responsible for admitting our powerlessness. This admission is within our power. It doesn't make it easy, but others will attest -- it is possible. This is referred to as confession.
Powerlessness is not an excuse to remain irresponsible.
And although I don't understand why or how this works (although I'm pretty confident in the one who does the work), it's amazingly difficult to free ourselves from our compulsions unless we admit to being powerless. Many times we "work at" an issue without every fully acknowledging it's power over us. This kind of work usually results in good intentions but eventual collapse from all the self-effort. This is very discouraging. Sincerity won't rescue us from the kind of imprisonment that comes with a true encounter with powerlessness.
Conversely, I've observed that people who confess -- a Greek work that literally means to agree with God about a matter -- often find a way back to God, community and peace through the process of recovery.
If you want to take this first step, remember that this is a step of acknowledgement with not explanation following the confession. Just admit it. I am powerless over: ______________________ and my life has become unmanageable in the following areas as a result of this powerlessness: ___________________.
Recommended reading: 2 Chronicles 12 - 14
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