But Then . . .

Then I acknowledged my sin to you,

 - Psalm 32

I know a young person that is stressing about college and career choices. She has endured several years of developing her skills, building her talents, preparing for the application process into a college program of her choice.

She gets close to the goal. She can see it and even begins to imagine the relief when she is finally accepted into a program she has set her heart on.

But almost every time, she gets pushed back down again, by forces outside her control.

I have noticed that this person has left God out of the equation. I wonder about her choices in her private life. Church is not a habit now. She does not seem happy, as she was just a few years ago when she was very active in Church. God has given her talents. He planted the vision in her mind and heart. Yet as she gets closer and closer to making it a reality, she relies less and less on God to get her there. And then it slips through her grasp.

But, what do you expect?

It reminds me of me. So many times in my life, I have failed in some objective, even a good one . . . only to realize that I was leaving God out of it. But if God is the giver of gifts, how can I hope to make progress without Him? How can I fully prepare myself, without at least acknowledging God?

The Psalmist gives us the starting point: "Then I acknowledged my sin to you . . . " He is talking about being in a very low part of life. He felt like his life was fading away, like death was overtaking him. And then at once the Psalmist realizes, and admits his sinfulness to God. Instantly, things got better.

And then in my own life, and in the life of this young woman, there is always a side door out of the situation. You see that the vision was correct, it was there all along. You were just refusing to focus on it, and let it become more clear in your eyes, like seeing a 3D image materialize from an image of complex patterns.

You must always make things right with God, before embarking on any great thing.