How many rooms of your house are you willing to show people when they come over? I frequently have to tell my husband when a new person comes over that I don’t want him showing them EVERY room in the house. Maybe it is just me, but there are levels of mess in my more private spaces I don’t want to show anyone. We don’t clean our bathroom for guests the way we do our living room. I think I maybe saw my in-laws’ bedroom once or twice in 23 years before they sold their home last year.  I think many spaces are off-limits to others because we are embarrassed or even ashamed. I like to keep our family’s messes hidden, trying to just show the cleanest, most organized parts of ourselves and our life.

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I think we all do this type of concealing with our inner lives, as well. Only certain people at certain times are allowed to see the messiest parts of us. Or maybe the truth is, we haven’t let anyone really see and know us and our secret addictions, fears, habits, and past lives. There are places that are dark, shocking, depressing, and sometimes even tragic that we don’t want anyone to know about. But keeping things in the dark can be dangerous. It can keep us in bondage to sin or even just to lies that we are believing about who we think we are based on what we have done.

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But I know of one person, and maybe you know him too, that offers to shine light into all the darkest places of your past, your heart, and your mind. He literally left Heaven to come to Earth to walk with people and share in their grief and suffering.  Jesus Christ came to rescue us from darkness. No one is too far gone for him to reach with his love.

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Even on arguably his hardest day on Earth, Jesus extended mercy and compassion to the people that were murdering him. In the Scripture verse from Luke, we see Jesus prayed to Father God on behalf of the people who were chanting “Crucify him.” Not their best day, calling for the brutal killing of an innocent man. If Jesus can extend that kind of forgiveness while facing a brutal death, can’t we trust him with the worst of what we have done? He already knows the messiest parts of us, the parts we would rather hide. But how can you welcome him into the places you consider a disaster, too overwhelming for anyone else to see? Perhaps you can usher him to each space in your heart and say “please make this new, please have your way to restore and revive.” Or as the psalmist prayed, “Create in me a clean heart, Oh God, and renew a right spirit within me” (Psalm 51:10). Jesus stands ready to forgive – won’t you trust him today with all the “rooms” of your life?

Jesus, we humbly come before you today, reminded that you know our innermost thoughts and every sin we have ever contemplated or committed. Because of your sacrifice and your love for us, we can trust you to extend mercy where we deserve wrath. Our sins are covered only because of you. Your forgiveness is available for all who call on your name and believe, no matter what we have done. Help us to draw near to you when we flounder and fail, instead of running while pretending maybe we can hide our sin from you. Deal tenderly with us, we pray, as we seek each day to be more like you. In your holy name we pray, Amen.