The Secret Sauce
Prayer 365 // The Rhythm of Repentance
“If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness. If we claim we have not sinned, we are calling God a liar and showing that his word has no place in our hearts.” - 1 John 1:8-10 NLT
This week’s theme is a continuation from Sunday’s message titled The Rhythm of Repentance which is part 6 of the series titled The Rhythms of Grace. The purpose of rhythm is to keep the song moving forward. God works in a series of rhythms that we call the Rhythms of Grace that He used to keep us moving forward in His perfect song, his perfect symphony known as His perfect will. So our goal is to keep flowing and not get stuck, one of the ways we achieve this is through the rhythm of repentance.
A year or so ago, I was talking to one of my spiritual fathers and I asked him what was the key to his success? You see he’s been preaching since he was a teenager and has successfully led their ministry for 20+ years, therefore I wanted to know how he was able to do so and achieve such great success? His response was both firm and straightforward, he said “I repent daily!” That was His response, repentance was His response, that every single day he repents. Every day! No matter what! I’m thinking to myself, "He’s a bishop! You’re telling me that your secret sauce, your secret ingredient is that you repent every single day?”
Now this did multiple things for me. First, it shocked me because I couldn’t understand it. The way I saw it, He was a bishop and we tend to think that leaders at some point become above sin or the need of repentance. But I want to encourage you today by understanding that no one is exempt from the need of repentance. We found this in 1 John 1:8-10, John made this very clear by saying, “If we claim we have no sin…” I want you to see that this is a statement of inclusion, this means everyone including himself (an apostle). "If we claim we have no sin we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth.” A person that is fooling himself is a person that is not flowing or moving, instead that person is stuck. Because as long as they walk outside of the truth, there is no progress in their life.
My prayer for us today is that we would engage in what I’m calling The Rhythm of Repentance. It’s been about a couple of years since Bishop told me this and I’ve learned the value of repentance and I want to share it with you this week. So this week we are going to lean in on the practice of Repentance. I believe it’s a regular practice that every believer should engage in. It’s the key that unlocks our worship, compassion, and forgiveness. This of the place most Christians become stuck, but I believe through this theme — focus and rhythm, many will become free.
Prayer Focus: That you would engage in the regular practice of repentance and the confession of sin.
I’m praying for you and with you,
Pastor Enrique Brooks
This week’s theme is a continuation from Sunday’s message titled The Rhythm of Repentance which is part 6 of the series titled The Rhythms of Grace. The purpose of rhythm is to keep the song moving forward. God works in a series of rhythms that we call the Rhythms of Grace that He used to keep us moving forward in His perfect song, his perfect symphony known as His perfect will. So our goal is to keep flowing and not get stuck, one of the ways we achieve this is through the rhythm of repentance.
A year or so ago, I was talking to one of my spiritual fathers and I asked him what was the key to his success? You see he’s been preaching since he was a teenager and has successfully led their ministry for 20+ years, therefore I wanted to know how he was able to do so and achieve such great success? His response was both firm and straightforward, he said “I repent daily!” That was His response, repentance was His response, that every single day he repents. Every day! No matter what! I’m thinking to myself, "He’s a bishop! You’re telling me that your secret sauce, your secret ingredient is that you repent every single day?”
Now this did multiple things for me. First, it shocked me because I couldn’t understand it. The way I saw it, He was a bishop and we tend to think that leaders at some point become above sin or the need of repentance. But I want to encourage you today by understanding that no one is exempt from the need of repentance. We found this in 1 John 1:8-10, John made this very clear by saying, “If we claim we have no sin…” I want you to see that this is a statement of inclusion, this means everyone including himself (an apostle). "If we claim we have no sin we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth.” A person that is fooling himself is a person that is not flowing or moving, instead that person is stuck. Because as long as they walk outside of the truth, there is no progress in their life.
My prayer for us today is that we would engage in what I’m calling The Rhythm of Repentance. It’s been about a couple of years since Bishop told me this and I’ve learned the value of repentance and I want to share it with you this week. So this week we are going to lean in on the practice of Repentance. I believe it’s a regular practice that every believer should engage in. It’s the key that unlocks our worship, compassion, and forgiveness. This of the place most Christians become stuck, but I believe through this theme — focus and rhythm, many will become free.
Prayer Focus: That you would engage in the regular practice of repentance and the confession of sin.
I’m praying for you and with you,
Pastor Enrique Brooks
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