What does it take to grow?Day 7

Good morning and welcome to today’s Daily insights. This is day 7 of our 
episodes, What does it take to Grow. On behalf of Pastor Lucy Paynter daily 
insights, this is Jane Lenny. 
At the beginning of the episodes, we said that as we go through these habits the 
Goal is; that l will commit to the habits necessary for spiritual maturity. As we 
commit to the habits, we continually grow each day to be more like Christ. In 
episode 1 we defined spiritual maturity as being like Christ and we got that from 
Eph 4:13, I read “until we come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s 
Son that we will be mature and full grown in the Lord, measuring up to the full 
stature of Christ.”
Today we look at habit number 3. In order to grow we need good spiritual hygiene 
- Confession of sin.
Have you ever gone for a long walk or taken a hike? In the middle of the hike you 
are panting, so tired, sweating and worn out. Then you come across a stream with 
cool clean water and you decided to nourish yourself? As you sip the water your 
body starts to cool down and you feel this strong sense of relaxation, joy, peace, 
you become lighter, your energy restored you feel like you have the strength to go 
double the distance you had covered?
In our spiritual journey, God wants you to experience the incredible joy of being 
completely forgiven of every sin. 
Psalms 32: 1-2 “Oh, what joy for those whose rebellion is forgiven, whose sin is 
put out of sight! 2 Yes, what joy for those whose record the Lord has cleared of sin,
whose lives are lived in complete honesty!
Sin makes us feel weary. It makes us feel like we are carrying a heavy burden. 
'hygiene' in our daily lives refers to the creation and reinforcement of good habits 
that promote health - no different than brushing our teeth or exercising

As we continue maturing, we embrace confession of our sins. 1 John 1:9 - If we 
confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us [our] sins, and to cleanse us 
from all unrighteousness.
God’s forgiveness clears the guilty completely. Just like the sip of the cool water in 
your hiking journey, Gods forgiveness nourishes you, it brings joy and peace.
The Bible in Psalm 32:1 records “Blessed is the one whose transgressions are 
forgiven, whose sins are covered.”
Isaiah 43:25 “I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, 
and remembers your sins no more ..."
Ephesians 1:7-8 “In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness 
of sins, according to the riches of His grace which He made to abound toward us in 
all wisdom and prudence.”
Some of you here this morning have been trying to run from God, trying to run 
from your sin. Some of you here this morning have a temper that flares, and you 
strike out in anger at those you love—your spouse, your kids. And because you’ve 
refused to confess it for the sin it is, you’ve been wandering in the wilderness. It’s 
dry. It’s desolate. There’s a cancer eating at your soul. Have you had enough yet?
Some of you here this morning have been trying to run from God, trying to run 
from your sin. Some of you here this morning have been convicted by God about 
your adultery, but you don’t want to acknowledge it and confess it as sin. The 
doctor says he’s not sure why you can’t sleep at night, but you know. The doctor 
says your stomach problems are real puzzling, but you know. You’ve been 
wandering in the wilderness. It’s dry. It’s desolate. Have you had enough yet?
The only way you can find the joy of forgiveness is through the humility of 
confession. 
On behalf of Pastor Lucy Paynter daily insights, this is Jane Lenny taking you 
through What Does It Take To Grow episodes. Today was day 7 of our episodes. 
Tomorrow we go to Habit number 4 in the 10 Habits of Maturing Christians. 
Remember to confess your sins daily. God bless you, Shalom Shalom