Fig Leaves, Part II

Yesterday we looked at the concept of hiding from relationships, yet sometimes we also try to hide from God. We may have fallen into a sin and we are ashamed and we have guilt and yet we try to cover over it with some sort of “fig leaf”. We have a barrier between God and ourselves. Here is what David said in Psalm 32: 5 “Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the LORD and you forgave the guilt of my sin.” David decided to come clean with the Lord and not “cover” up his sin. He let nothing come between God and himself. Isn’t that the way to live? A life of nothing to hide before God, a life of being able to come to God and confess things so we don’t have to carry around guilt and shame? So, if we have a barrier between God and ourselves how do we get it removed? First, I think we need to go back to Psalm 32:5. We need to acknowledge to God that we tried to put things between Him and us. We need to confess it to Him and let Him know that is not the kind of relationship we want with Him. God wants us to be close to Him. He wants to care for and love us. God is love. Next, we have to recognize those feelings of wanting to hide from God. Ask Him to make you aware when a situation comes that will make you want to get out the fig leaves and cover yourself. We also need to make sure we are reading our Bible and spending time with God. By knowing God and His heart we will come to know that we can bring anything to Him and that is what He wants. Do not let past bad experiences rob you of the joy of having relationships with God or with others. “Come near to God and he will come near to you…” James 4:8

Lori