Overwhelming Grace

I don't have the opportunity to watch a lot of tv, but I had occassion to catch the new Verizon commercial. Has anyone seen this? A young man walks up to a lady and asks why she hasn't called. She then replies that her cell phone signal is horrible. He shrugs a bit and recommends that she get a new cell phone and give him a call. Then the Verizon gang pops out and she thanks them for hiding and not giving her away. In other words, she wanted to cover up and lie to this chap.

Isn't this so much like us? To lie or cover things up so we don't have to deal with the real issues? We are so famous for hiding things, mis-stating the facts, or even manipulating the truth to fit our own needs. I know - I used to work this system with the best of them.

But at some point you get tired of the lies and the cover up. You get tired of always looking over your shoulder. You get tired of covering up the cover up. You get tired of always worrying that someone will find out. And most of all, you get tired of dealing with the guilt.

My guilt has overwhelmed me;
like a load it weighs me down.
Psalms 38:4 (NCV)

As we talked about this past weekend, the first step is confession:

Then I confessed my sins to you
and didn't hide my guilt.
I said, “I will confess my sins to the Lord,”
and you forgave my guilt.
Psalms 32:5 (NCV)

And as a result, God will wipe them away forever:

I will forgive them for the wicked things they did,
and I will not remember their sins anymore.
Hebrews 8:12 (NCV)

I can't help but to think of the overwhelming Grace of God when I see that commercial. As I continue to work on some specific areas in my life where God has been challenging me, I pray that He will remind me often of His grace. May I lay down my heavy burdens and enjoy the wonderful and light yoke He has allowed me to embrace.