“If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us” (1 John 1:8-10; all Scripture quotations are from the English Standard Version).

The previous articles in this series (here and here) looked at the subject of sin and how it has a negative impact on our lives. We saw that it is best if we take time in our daily devotions to confront our sins and bring them before the Lord. So, how can we work confession into our prayers?

Early in your time of prayer, take a few moments to look back over the previous day (or longer, if your prayer life is sporadic). Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you areas where you have fallen short of God’s perfect will for your life. Did you commit any overt, explicit sins? Were there situations that you mishandled? Perhaps you lost your temper when you misunderstood someone’s intent or assumed they meant you harm.

Make certain to look out for the following:

• Sins of commission: when you actively did something wrong.
• Sins of omission: when you should have done something but intentionally chose not to do it. Maybe you had a passing thought that you could help a person in need, but ignored that prompting by your conscience and/or the Holy Spirit because you did not want to be bothered.
• Sins of speech: dishonest, vulgar, insulting, demeaning, or otherwise harmful speech. (This includes a lot more than “using the Lord’s name in vain” as an expletive.)
• Sins of thought: lust, anger, etc. You did not act out on a sinful thought, but you fantasized or daydreamed about it.
• Actions committed with impure or selfish motives: It looks like you did the right thing, but you did it for the wrong reasons.
• Unforgiveness: Yes, someone else might have sinned against you, but by harboring resentment, you are continuing to maintain sinful thoughts and attitudes.

Take some time to confess those sins to God. You might find yourself confessing them repeatedly; the devil knows our weak points, and we will continue to struggle until we finally experience a breakthrough in that area of our lives.

I usually include this early in my devotions, using the prayer of confession from The Book of Common Prayer:

Most merciful God, we confess that we have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done, and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We are truly sorry and we humbly repent. For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, have mercy on us and forgive us; that we may delight in your will, and walk in your ways, to the glory of your Name. Amen.

Regular confession helps us keep “short accounts” with God. Sometimes, especially after a big lapse, you might want to take a few minutes to pray a prayer of confession immediately, instead of waiting for your next personal devotion time. However, even if you confess your sins to God once per day, you are keeping a short tab instead of holding onto guilt for days, weeks, months, or even years on end. Confession leads to forgiveness, which opens the door to the joy of the Lord and enables us to praise Him. We should pray daily for God’s strength and mercy to forgive us and to empower us to live holy lives that glorify Him.

Copyright © 2025 Michael E. Lynch. All rights reserved.