Praying Through The Confession Psalms

Nick Minerva • Mar 09, 2021

I’m so thankful for the forgiveness of God. Psalm 103:12-13 says “As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him.” Because of the cross of Jesus, all of our sins are forgiven. Sins past, present, and future are covered. Check out Colossians 2:13.

Colossians‬ ‭2:13‬ ‭ And when you were dead in trespasses and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, he made you alive with him and forgave us all our trespasses.

Christ has achieved and completed our forgiveness. But just because Christ has achieved it for us doesn’t mean we always experience it. Despite the amazing gift of God’s forgiveness, we’ve all battled feelings of guilt and shame. How can praying through the Psalms help? Enter the Psalms of Confession. 

Confessing our sin is how we experience the forgiveness that was won for us at the cross.

Confession is such a gift of grace. At first, it might not seem like it. Admitting where we failed is hard. It’s a hit to our pride. Can’t we just pretend like our sin never happened? Unfortunately, sin doesn’t work like that. It hangs on. It promises much and delivers only pain, guilt, and shame. And confessing our sin is difficult. It’s humbling. But like so many things in the Christian life, this hard, humbling work also brings joy and life. Confessing our sin is how we experience the forgiveness that was won for us at the cross. When we confess our specific sins to God we experience the specific forgiveness of that sin. This is why regular confession is so good for our souls. It’s how we get real about our sin AND how we learn to experience real forgiveness. 

The Psalms of confession are such a helpful tool to walk us through how to confess our sins. They remind us to depend on the grace of God, like in Psalm 6:2 “Be gracious to me, Lord, for I am weak; heal me, Lord, for my bones are shaking.” They show us how to mourn over our sin, like in Psalm 38:6 “I am bent over and brought very low; all day long I go around in mourning.” They teach us what God desires from us in our confession, like in Psalm 51:17 “The sacrifice pleasing to God is a broken spirit. You will not despise a broken and humbled heart, God.” But most importantly they bring home the forgiveness of God to our hearts. Here is Psalm 130:3-4 “Lord, if you kept an account of iniquities, Lord, who could stand? But with you there is forgiveness, so that you may be revered.” And they demonstrate for us the joy that can be found on the other side of confession. As David is wrapping up his famous prayer of confession in Psalm 51 he talks about God’s delight with his people. 

Psalm 51:18-19 In your good pleasure , cause Zion to prosper; build the walls of Jerusalem. Then you will delight in righteous sacrifices, whole burnt offerings; then bulls will be offered on your altar.

As you pray through Psalms of confession you will know that you are not alone in your struggle.

‭‭‬Unlike other categories of Psalms, there isn’t an overabundance of Psalms of confession. Personally, Psalm 38 and 51 are the two that I rely on most. These Psalms have become friends of grace to me. Because, while confessing specific sins is hard, I know the mercy that is found on the other side of confession. One of the comforting things about using Psalms of Confession to help shape your confession is that these are real prayers. These aren’t hypothetical. These are prayers of confession in the middle of the deep pain that comes with sin. Psalm 38:3 says “There is no soundness in my body because of your indignation; there is no health in my bones because of my sin.” As you pray through Psalms of confession and apply them to your own life you will know that you are not alone in your struggle. Christians for thousands of years have walked the path you are walking on and found God’s forgiveness and mercy. You will too. 

How Do We Navigate Suffering?

THRIVING IN EXILE

Discover how your Christian identity can enable you to walk through the difficulties in your life well while at the same time point people to the one place they can find lasting hope.

Purchase the paperback version of  Thriving in Exile  today and I’ll send you the ebook free! Just click the button below to purchase your copy of the book then and I’ll send you the E-Book free of charge. Message me below a copy of your order to get your free copy.

A Creed To Remind The Gathered Church Of Its New Life In Christ

By Nick Minerva • 14 Jul, 2023
When I was pastoring I wanted to read a blessing over the church that would remind all of us of our new life in Christ. So I wrote this new life creed and every week I would read it and remind us of what Christ had done for us. We gather together as believers professing our great need We acknowledge that we have fallen short We confess that we are rebels who have gone our own way Apart from Christ, we stand condemned, guilty, and unable to save ourselves But what we are incapable of doing, God did In his infinite love, God made a way of salvation for all who would believe Jesus willingly laid down his life and received the just punishment we deserve So that could walk in new life So yes, we confess our great need We humbly recognize that apart from Christ we are incapable of any good thing But we also proclaim that because of the finished work of the cross we will never be apart from Christ We are forever secure in the love of the Father We have been sealed by the Holy Spirit All because of the sacrifice of the Son, Jesus Christ. We are no longer in bondage to sin We are no longer facing righteous wrath We have been declared holy by our King And nothing on heaven or earth will change that reality This gathering is a testimony to our redeemed state We pursue holy living to be an authentic demonstration of the love we have for Christ We believe that we have been empowered by grace to meet our every need And we gladly anticipate the complete fulfillment of our adaption and the remaking of this world at the coming of our Lord To Christ be glory forever and ever Amen

A Praying Church: A Book Review

By Nick Minerva • 23 May, 2023
Prayer is one of those topics that always seems to convict me. I have never heard a sermon or read a book on prayer and not been challenged. Even as I am writing this review there is a bit of imposter syndrome because I know I should pray more. In A Praying Church , Paul Miller writes about how to become a people of hope in a discouraging world through prayer. And he does so in a way that was very authentic and accessible. While I was consistently challenged, I was also consistently encouraged. Throughout the book, he takes you on his journey of developing a personal prayer life plus countless stories of ministries that developed communal prayer as a vital component of their life together. One thing that struck home with me throughout these stories was the reality that prayer always grows out of desperation for God. There were several things that I found very helpful in this book. One of them was the connection between a life yielded to the Holy Spirit and a vibrant prayer life. The power to do anything of eternal importance comes from the Holy Spirit and the Spirit moves in response to prayer. Paul shows us a biblical pattern we see throughout the New Testament. Prayer-Spirit-Jesus-power. However, this is not a simple formula to get God to do what you want. Another thing I appreciated about this book is Paul tells us time and again that the Spirit often moves in ways we don’t expect and that almost always includes difficulties. The Spirit enables us to look more like Jesus and that means joining him in the fellowship of his suffering. So this is not a “how to turn God into your personal genie” scheme, like many books on prayer. God often answers in ways we don’t expect and in places we don’t anticipate. This book is also full of practical help. I’ve already mentioned the stories he tells, but Paul also offers several helpful charts, strategies, and ideas to help put into place what he writes about (and lives by.) At the end of each chapter, he has a section called “A Word To Pastors” with a few paragraphs of wisdom to help them become a person of prayer and then lead their congregation to become a church of prayer. This book also made me thankful that I am a part of a church that has sought to grow in corporate prayer over the last few years. This would be a great book for any ministry leader who is burdened with the prayer life of his or her church. But it’s also a great read for any believer seeking to develop their own prayer life. Crossway was kind to send me a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. You can get a copy of it at the affiliate link below.

Non-Toxic Masculinity: A Book Review

By Nick Minerva • 28 Apr, 2023
Let me start this review by saying everyone should read this book. If you've grown up in Evangelicalism, you‘ve no doubt heard of purity culture. For the last several years we have seen the harm that has come as a result of this sub-group of Christianity. In Non-Toxic Masculinity, Zachary Wagner does an excellent job unpacking its teaching and the damage that has come as a result. He explains so well the angst I've been feeling with the movement and how often the Church falls short and winds up doing more damage. But unlike many critiques, this one also points a way forward. We know what toxic male sexuality looks like. We see it in the news and unfortunately, in the Church. But what does healthy male sexuality look like? What does it look like for me? What will it look like for my boys? In my heart, I know what I want it to look like, but so often I struggle to find the right words to express it. Non-Toxic Masculinity paints a healthy picture that is (re)humanizing and ultimately looks like Jesus, who, like all of us, had a sexual body. Zach is also very transparent in this book and God used his transparency to encourage, challenge, and convict me. As you read his story you will no doubt find yourself resonating with him on some level. Every man should read this book for themselves first and foremost. But if you have sons, nephews, grandsons, or young boys in your life, reading it is a must. Non-Toxic Masculinity is a breath of fresh air that will prove to be a tremendous resource for generations. Thank you Zach for writing it and sharing your story to serve us.
More Posts
Share by: