EVERY DAY IS A DAY OF ATONEMENT

This is to be a lasting ordinance for you: On the tenth day of the seventh month you must deny yourselves and not do any work —whether native-born or a foreigner residing among you—because on this day atonement will be made for you, to cleanse you. Then, before the Lord, you will be clean from all your sins. (Leviticus 16:29-30)
　

Today is Yom Kippur—the holiest day in the Jewish calendar. The day when Jews feel closest to God. The day they seek forgiveness from their sins; turn away in repentance and are cleansed.

Asking for forgiveness is usually the easy part for us—although sometimes it only comes after the pain of owning up to our sins.

Accepting forgiveness and being cleansed are also the easy part—we just open our hearts and receive the flow of God’s grace and mercy.

It’s the repentance that’s the toughie in the equation. I sin. I ask forgiveness. But do I really intend to turn away from that sin? Never do it again? Do I even want to?

Repentance is about change. Changing our thinking. Changing our focus. Changing our habits. Changing our desires. Sometimes—changing our natural instincts.

It’s the hard part. And it’s usually painful.

The temporary pain of understanding our need for repentance is tough, too. It’s about accepting the truth that we are wrong, infallible, faulty. The repentance is usually ongoing—forever. It’s about changing for good. And sometimes that change requires daily or even moment-by-moment awareness and commitment to change.

But God rewards that repentance with his forgiveness; his mercy and grace.

Mercy is not getting what we deserve. When we are forgiven and cleansed, we get to skip the punishment part. You know, that eternal damnation thing? Praise God for His mercy.

Grace is getting what we don’t deserve. When we sin, we realize we don’t deserve God’s forgiveness and cleansing. We don’t deserve His love. We don’t deserve His promise of eternal life in His glorious presence. But He gives us grace anyway. Praise God for His grace.

As Christians, Jesus provided a way for us to approach the throne of mercy and grace every moment of every day. We don’t have to wait for that one day each year when we ask forgiveness, repent and are cleansed. Just as we need God’s mercy and grace each moment, so can we seek it.

And each time we seek God, we see more of His character and—hopefully—can grow more into the likeness of Jesus.

Enjoy today as Yom Kippur and rejoice that—for Christians—every day is the holiest day of the year.

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, thank you for Jesus and the means to come before you every moment of every day to ask forgiveness, repent and be cleansed. Amen.

WHAT ABOUT YOU? Which part of the equation is harder for you: the process of owning up to your sin or the turning away from it?

COLLECTING CHANGE

A Widow's Mite

This post is part of the Christian Writers blog chain. Our theme for September is "change."

Please follow the links to the right to see what my friends have to say this month.





Ever watch the movie Sahara? Dirk Pitt (Matthew McConaughey) is off searching for Civil War gold in the desert of Africa. At one point, his friend Al Giordino (Steve Zahn) points to the gold coin in Dirk’s hand and says,

"Hey, you know my dad collected ancient coins, from Rome, China, Siam, Persia… somehow they all ended up in a shoe box in New Jersey."

Ancient coins are valuable to us today. A single worn bronze circlet—pocket change 4,000 years ago—might fetch a thousand dollars from a collector of antiquities. No matter that it was of little value back then.

I like to imagine God as an eternal collector of antiquities, gazing down at us from heaven. He’d point to us with love, saying, "This one is old and worn; but it is precious to me."

And one by one, He’d gather up all of our old and worn out souls—not to be kept in a shoe box in New Jersey; but to sit at his feet in glory. Bright and shining in His presence. Beyond value. Of incomparable worth.

I’m old and worn. A bit ragged around the edges. Not worth much in today’s standards. But praise God! I’m precious to Him and He was willing to pay the ultimate price to add me to His eternal collection.

Remember on those days when you feel like a widow’s mite and thinking of those treasures in heaven: You’re one of them.

Thank you, Jesus.

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, thank you for looking at us as worthy of the ultimate price Jesus paid for our salvation. Thank you for gathering us unto you and securing a place for us in your heavenly treasury. Thank you that even if we are old and worn, we still shine brightly in your eyes. Amen.

WHAT ABOUT YOU? Do you collect coins?