I once knew an elderly lady from the mountains who had a habit of secretly smoking a pipe. She thought no one knew. When she went to the store, she would always buy a large tin of tobacco and would say as she set it on the counter, “It’s for my hands,” hoping people would believe that she was buying it for her hired hands. Everyone knew that it was really for her own hands.

One day I happened upon her suddenly and she had not had time to put her pipe away, so she hid it in the pocket of her apron. It was comical to watch the smoke circle up out of her pocket while she talked, thinking I didn’t notice. I resisted the urge to draw her into lengthy conversation just to see how long it would take for her apron to begin to smolder.

Like a smoking habit, sin is something that is difficult and eventually impossible to hide. If you attempt to hide your sin, you usually only deceive yourself. Your wife knows. Your children know. Those close to you know. God knows.

Sin is not only impossible to hide, it is too heavy to bear. One summer while doing odd jobs for a lady, I overloaded her truck with gravel. The tires were nearly flat with the weight. The bumper was inches from the ground. The engine labored so hard on the way home that huge black clouds of smoke billowed out along the highway, nearly causing an accident. I was pulled over by the police and eventually released to limp home with the poor old green truck, but I learned my lesson. Don’t try to haul more than you are designed to carry.

You were not designed to live with the weight of unconfessed sin. If you try to hide your sin and refuse to confess it and repent, you will eventually come to ruin and to shame. “He that covereth his sins shall not prosper; but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy” (Proverbs 28:13).

As soon as you are aware of your sin, repent. The load of sin will disappear and you can prosper again. As the old story goes, when the demons argue about the most effective way to destroy a man’s soul, some will say, “Tell him there’s no heaven.” Others will say, “Tell him there’s no hell.” Others say, “Just tell him there’s no hurry.”

When your conscience tells you that you have sinned, don’t try to hide it. Don’t delay, don’t deny your sin, don’t minimize it, and don’t confuse remorse or regret with repentance. Take advantage of the privilege of the Kingdom of Heaven being at hand, and repent. Repent right away!

You weren’t designed to operate well under the weight of sin.

When you are confronted with your sin, repent!

• Don’t try to hide it.
• Don’t deny it.
• Don’t minimize it.
• Don’t blame someone else.
• Don’t confuse remorse and regret with repentance.
• Don’t delay!

Written by Ken Pierpont