「我沒有做這件事！」我斬釘截鐵地說。其實這是謊言，而且我差點就得逞了，直到上帝制止了我。那時，我還在讀中學，某一次樂隊表演的時候，我和一群人在後面射擊紙團嬉鬧。當時的學校主任是前海軍陸戰隊隊員，以管教嚴厲而出名，我很怕他。所以當我的玩鬧夥伴指認我的時候，我就對主任撒謊，過後我也矇騙父親。

然而，上帝不允許這個謊言繼續隱瞞下去，祂使我心生愧疚。在拒不認錯的幾個星期之後，我的態度軟化了，並懇求上帝和父親原諒我。不久之後，我去了主任的家，流著淚地向他坦承錯誤。值得慶幸的是，主任寬容地原諒了我。

我永遠不會忘記卸下這個重擔的感覺有多美好。幾個星期以來，我第一次擺脫了愧疚的重擔，心中感到歡欣無比。聖經記載大衛也曾認罪和懺悔，並向上帝傾訴：「我閉口不認罪的時候，⋯⋯以致骨頭衰殘。因為祢的手晝夜重壓在我身上。」他又說：「我向祢承認我的罪。」（詩篇32篇3-5節，新譯本）

誠實無偽是上帝看重的品格。上帝要我們向祂認罪；傷害別人時，請求對方寬恕。大衛宣告：「祢就赦免我的罪惡」（5節）。體會蒙上帝赦罪而得的自由，是何等美好啊！

“I didn’t do it!” It was a lie, and I almost got away with it, until God stopped me. When I was in middle school, I was part of a group shooting spitballs in the back of our band during a performance. Our director was an ex-marine and famous for discipline, and I was terrified of him. So when my partners in crime implicated me, I lied to him about it. Then I lied to my father also.

But God wouldn’t allow the lie to go on. He gave me a very guilty conscience about it. After resisting for weeks, I relented. I asked God and my dad for forgiveness. A while later, I went to my director’s house and tearfully confessed. Thankfully, he was kind and forgiving.

I’ll never forget how good it felt to have that burden lifted. I was free from the weight of guilt and happy for the first time in weeks. David describes a time of conviction and confession in his life too. He tells God, “When I kept silent, my bones wasted away . . . . For day and night your hand was heavy on me.” He continues, “Then I acknowledged my sin to you” (Psalm 32:3-5).

Authenticity matters to God. He wants us to confess our sins to Him and also to ask forgiveness of those we’ve wronged. “You forgave the guilt of my sin,” David proclaims (v. 5). How good it is to know the freedom of God’s forgiveness!