Healing Starts with Revealing

March 23, 2023

The Bible says, “Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed” (James 5:16 NIV).

Do you want to be emotionally healthy? The first step in that process is confessing your sins to God.

But to get over your sin and get on with your life—to be

emotionally healthy—you need to take a second step. You need to tell

someone else about your sin.

You may ask, “Why does God want me to drag somebody else into this?”

Here’s why: God knows that the root of your problem is relational.

You often don’t even realize that your broken relationships with

other people are the root of your problems. Instead of being honest with

others, you disguise who you really are. You act like everything is

just fine—when it’s not.

That behavior isolates you from other people. It prevents intimacy.

And it keeps you from the deepest level of love. You cannot love fully

with hidden sin in your heart.

This doesn’t mean that you have to broadcast your sins to everyone,

but someone should know what you’re struggling with. A trusted friend

in your small group. A mentor. Someone in your church family who can

love you, encourage you and pray for you. That’s where true healing is

found, through confessing your sins to one another.

A lot of people don’t do this step, because of shame. They confess to

God, but they don’t confess to anyone else. Shame grows in the

darkness, but when it’s brought to the light, it has no power anymore.

If you want healing, you’ve got to stop concealing.

What’s the thing in your life you don’t want anybody to know about?

That’s the area where God wants to give you the most grace, mercy, and

healing.