The word is near you, on your lips and in your heart … if you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
~ Romans 10:8-9
“Confession” for some of us may conjure images of a person sitting in a confessional booth next to a priest separated by a screen baring their soul. But we also talk about criminals who confess to some crime or believers who confess their faith during worship. So, isn’t confession, regardless of what kind it is, telling someone the truth about what we believe? There’s something important about speaking our confession where others can hear it. It’s also very important for us to hear ourselves confess as we articulate the truth. This is a major component in therapy. If you’ve ever been to a therapist, sometimes they actually speak very little. As you hear yourself speak the truth, you make connections between one thought and another, and you draw conclusions.
Confessing our faith – speaking the truth about what we believe about God – saying it out loud so that someone else can hear and so that we can hear ourselves – helps us make and grow connections. We make connections in our own thoughts as we articulate what we believe. We make connections with the person with whom we are speaking because they gain insight into what makes us tick – what we believe and why, and about our values. The connections become more significant if that person, in turn, confesses the truth of their belief to you. Please note: this isn’t about converting anyone – this is simply confessing, sharing, relating, connecting whether both people are of the same faith or differing faiths; same political views or differing views; same sports team or rivalries.
This is what our theme “Growing Connections” is about – relationships, getting to know others on a deeper and more spiritual level. At the end of March, adult leaders confessed what we believe about Holy Communion through our First Communion classes. At the end of April, I will confess and tell the truth of God through New Member Classes, and, in May, those new members will confess that they will join with the people of Bethel in doing the work of God as we are His hands, feet, voice, and heart in our world today.
In a time when it feels like connections are being broken and people are feeling increasingly disconnected, I invite you to confess – to speak and to listen – to leave space in your day to build and grow connections.
In Christ,
Pastor Jeff
Epicurious Lutheran 