Make a Clean Start

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9 (NKJV)

God is always faithful to forgive us when we do wrong. But He doesn’t stop there. First John 1:9 also says He cleanses us. Asking for forgiveness always brings a type of cleansing to the relationship. When you gave your life to Christ, you could be sure that God forgave you, but there still was power in asking for that forgiveness. It brought a type of cleanness to your life.

It’s much like the healing of any wound. It can’t heal properly if it’s full of dirt. When you were a child and you scraped your knee, the first thing your mom or dad did was clean out the wound. It was sometimes painful, but this temporary discomfort prevented the long-term suffering infection can bring.

When a wound is clean, it heals up beautifully. The same is true of the emotional wounds we inflict on each other. When we ask for forgiveness after hurting someone, we wash the wound clean.Of course, it’s not a good idea to ask for forgiveness and then spend the next ten minutes justifying why you did what you did. That will just start an argument! Instead, simply ask for forgiveness. Although healing still may take some time if the wound is deep, we give it the best chance of healing fully and beautifully.

When you ask God to forgive you, He always forgives you and allows you to make a clean start. If you’ve hurt someone, you can’t control whether or not they will forgive you, but you can encourage a clean start in the relationship by asking for forgiveness and by doing what you can to make things right.