The Stay Sharp Weekly newsletter equips Christian men to get sharp and stay sharp in every area of their lives.
Hey man of God,
Let me offer some wisdom.
Stop using scented trash bags. They make the stink worse, not better.
My step-dad was the wrong kind of dangerous man. He was a broken man in need of healing, and His woundedness created a volatile culture in our home. I remember when he would hit my mom. (He was also a coward.) Instead of repenting and coming to her and the Lord humbly, flowers showed up on the kitchen table.
Even as a child, I knew that was a load of crap.
There is no substitute for honest confession with our words and real repentance with our actions.
If we are expecting true intimacy with our wives and nearness with the Lord but have unconfessed sin, the solution is not complicated.
Hint: It’s not scented trash bags or flowers.
Here are three rules of honest confession:
See it clearly - Sin often blinds us and diminishes our perception of the wrong that was done. Even our own hearts deceive us (Jeremiah 17:9). Ask the Lord to help you see the truth of your actions and their consequences.
Own it fully - Unhelpful confession sounds like, “I’m sorry you were hurt by what I did.” Honest confession sounds like, “I see that my sin hurt you and I am sorry that I caused you pain.”
Ask courageously - Say these words, “Please forgive me.” These three words are often more difficult than the apology. A confession is an admission, and asking for forgiveness is an invitation for God and the other person to participate in the redemption of the relationship.
Which one will you be?
Where is the unconfessed sin in your life? The unresolved hurt you have caused? The errant words that you meant as a joke, but cut your loved ones like a knife?
If you refuse to hunt it down and see it for what it is, then you are the wrong kind of dangerous man. You and everyone around you are paying the price for your hardened heart.
A man who is quick to confess and repent of sin, whose heart is humble and bent toward reconciliation, is dangerous to the darkness!
Which one will you be?
This Week's TOP 3
- READ: Proverbs 18
- THINK: C.S. Lewis on love and vulnerability, from his book The Four Loves:
“To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything and your heart will be wrung and possibly broken… Lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness. But in that casket, safe, dark, motionless, airless, it will change. It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable. To love is to be vulnerable.”
I dare you to spend some time thinking about this this week.
- ACT: Take 10 minutes this week and write down the significant times in your life when you have received forgiveness. How does forgiveness make you more dangerous to the darkness?
Stay sharp,
Aubrey
"THIS IS SHOCKING!"
I had an amazing 90 minutes with a solid man of God this week. He signed up for a 90 Minute Sharpening Session with me, wanting to get clarity in a new season, refresh his communication with his wife, and fight against his lone-wolf tendencies.
At the end of the 90 minutes, these were his words. "This is shocking how much we accomplished together." His clarity, fire, and focus were back.
It's hard to believe that 90 minutes could change your life, but I know it can. I've seen God work so many times in these conversations.
God has gifted me to help you take the ruts, the mess and the fog of your current season and get you back on the road to confidence and clear purpose.
Text or call me. 214-709-3828.
I want you to experience what Jason experienced this week. Don't wait any longer. How has waiting helped you this far?
Be a man of action.
AND get this free hat too! :)
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