How to Repent from Sin… the Right Way
Just like how we’re saved by God’s grace and not our own works, we need to also give any sinful habits/deeds that Holy Spirit points out to God. We cannot do it on our own strength. If we try, we’ll end up in an endless loop of failing, over and over.
I’m not against all churches or anything (OK, a little – maybe most of them), but this isn’t something I’ve really ever heard explained like this before.
I’ve heard these phrases:
- “You must repent!”
- “Give it to God!”
- “Turn from sin!”
That’s all fine and dandy, but… how? I don’t really hear the “how” explained too much. We’re just kind of left on our own to figure that out, I guess.
Let’s Make it Simple
I think repentance is simply this:
“Lord God, I’m sorry for my sin of [NAME YOUR SIN]. I know that I can trust you with it, so I give it to you. Please take it from me. I don’t want it anymore. I want more of you. I trust you to handle it for me.”
That’s it.
Nowhere in there are we saying we’re going to handle it ourselves. That’s works – not grace. Trying to handle it ourselves is kind of like saying, “I’ll handle this myself, God. I don’t need you.” but we must realize that’s us trying to handle it ourselves and that is pride and idolatry.
I’ll say it again for the cheap seats… trying to handle getting rid of sin using our own strength and not God’s strength is pride and idolatry.
It’s kind of like using sin to get rid of sin – how can that work?
Here’s what the Bible says about pride in the book of James (I love this book so much):
James (Jacob) 4:6-7 TPT
Giving sin to God to let him handle it is humility. With that, you get grace. And you are turning to God, away from temptation. That’s resisting the devil.
Trying to stop sinning on your own is just like trying to get salvation on your own – there’s no difference.
When you hear “repent” that means to give your sin to God. So, like… do that. A lot. Do that and see what happens. See how much freedom you get. See how much weight is lifted off of you. See how much lighter you feel… wow!
This is so profound, and yet so simple. I did not come up with this. Holy Spirit has been teaching me, and I feel l need to share this with everyone. One more thing…
Use it for More Than Just Sin!
Whew! I just gave up something that’s been bothering me (intensely). I feel so light and free. Did the problem instantly go away? Nope. That’s fine. It’s in God’s hands now, not my own. I’ll now just let him handle it. I’ll leave it in his hands and I won’t mess with it. It’s gone. I’m free from it!
And the Devil just said, “No, it’s not gone.” So to him I said, “The Devil, fear, and anxiety, leave in the name of Jesus!” I also find myself tensing up about things, so I need to take a moment to unclench my jaw, and the rest of my body and relax, letting it go. That’s me physically giving it to God.
Conclusion
I hope you find this as big of a revelation as I do. It’s truly mind-blowing. Know that God wants to help you in every area of your life. He hates to see us struggle with things. He just patiently waits for us to finally turn to him and hand things to him. He’s a gentleman, so he quietly waits, and then he’s just so happy when we do it. He wants to see us happy because we’re his kids!
Keep that “kid” mindset as much as you can because that’ll keep pride out of the picture. Kids can’t do everything themselves. They need help. They need help opening things. They need help reaching things. They need help understanding things. And the list goes on. Be a kid. Walk in that humility of needing help.
I’m a skier, so my picture of God and me is this…
I’m a kid, on his left side of God, who is adult-sized and you see our backs, walking away. We’re both in our ski gear/clothes (goggles up). He has his skis and poles on his back, and he’s carrying my skis in his right hand. He’s holding my left hand. I’m looking up at him, and he’s looking down at me. We’re both smiling. We just enjoyed a great day on the snow and we’re off to relax and off to our next adventure together.
Isn’t that just so peaceful and calming? I’d love to get that picture painted someday. I tried getting A.I. to do it and it was a hilarious disaster. I picture alpine tress on our sides and the sun going down on our right side. You can see our tracks in the snow – his big feet and my little feet.
Go with that today. Give your troubles to God. Let him handle them for you.