Unrepentant Me

Read: Haggai 2
“3 Who is left among you who saw this house in its former glory? And how do you see it now? Is not this in your sight as nothing in comparison to that?” Haggai 2:3

Examine:
Some of the people were not broken over their sin, only their loss. Their view of what once was stole their joy from what God was doing now.

Apply:
As a parent, disciplining my kids is one of the most discouraging acts to carry out. There are many times I apply consequences for their choices in the form of taking things away. When I sit down to help them understand what happened, I often become frustrated when their only concern seems to be the loss of allowance, privilege, or toy. They completely miss the point that they hurt others and made a bad choice. Totally miss it…Ouch. Apples do not fall far from the tree.

Pray:
When I read this text I see myself so clearly. I often lament more over the loss of stuff than I do the ugliness of my sin. Once I move on I look back and grieve what once was and allow it to destroy what is available to me today. When I make a mistake I am often more concerned with the consequences than I am the hurt I caused You.

I believe that the first step of gaining wisdom is to confess the foolishness. That is what I want to do today, so here we go. I am not really repentant over much in my life. I fear consequences and or getting grounded by You and so I pray do-over prayers; but I mostly just don’t want a smacking from You. When Your discipline does come, I often flail about in the floor and carry on like I have been massively wronged. I point fingers and demand a better measure of justice by accusing others around me as being guilty of greater sin and yet getting away with it. Man, I do sound like my kids.

Unlike me, Your love is patient and Your wrath is longsuffering. You always take the time to sit with me as many times as it takes to teach me what I need to learn. I feel You sitting with me this morning and I know there are some things I need to release to You. Your discipline is good and it leads me to safety. I do confess my lack of repentance and the poison of my pride. I see clearly in the mirror this morning and I do not like all that I see. My anger, my pride, and my selfishness are all on full display today. I confess them to You and trust You to help change the hardness of my heart.