Day 7: Confession Prayer, Part 2


"Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper,
but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy."
Proverbs 28:13 

Confession of sin is what people usually think about when they hear the word confession and that’s what we’ll add to our prayer time, today. 

Confession allows us to receive the forgiveness of God for sin and relieve our guilt from sin. The only person to truly offer relief from the things I’ve done wrong, and the people I’ve hurt, and the mistakes I’ve made is Jesus. That feeling of guilt and shame when I mess up, or hurt someone needs to be taken care of and that’s where confession comes into play.  

Confession humbly asks God to break the sin-chains that bind, hinder, and hold us. It seems counterintuitive but the maturity of a Christ follower is often revealed in how much more and how much more often they confess. Even one of the most mature Christians to ever live, who saw the risen Jesus, the Apostle Paul, whom God used to write 13 out of 27 books of the New Testament, knew he needed relief from his sins. In a letter he wrote to his apprentice, he wrote these words: 

“Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst. But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his immense patience as an example for those who would believe in him and receive eternal life.” 1 Timothy 1:15-16 

John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist movement of churches, asked himself twenty-two self-examination questions every evening and recorded his answers in a journal. He desired to grow in holiness and found several “methods” that worked for him and thousands of others. 

We can use a few of those questions in our prayerwork, below, to examine our own hearts, and then confess our sins. 

Prayerwork: Keep praying like you’ve been doing. You’re building a habit of praying: becoming a praying person instead of just a person who prays. Now look over the questions below. Think back through your day (yesterday if you’re doing this in the morning, or today, if you’re doing this in the evening). As you answer the questions, underline the ones that call you out for missing the mark. 

  • Am I consciously or unconsciously creating the impression that I am better than I really am? In other words, am I a hypocrite?
  • Am I a slave to dress, friends, work, or habits?
  • Am I self-conscious, self-pitying, or self-justifying?
  • Do I disobey God in anything?
  • Is there anyone whom I fear, dislike, disown, criticize, hold a resentment toward, or disregard? If so, what am I doing about it?
  • Do I grumble or complain constantly?
  • Is Christ real to me?


Pick which answer to the questions above you need to confess to God, so He can forgive you and set you free. We’ll put your answer in the prayer below. Let’s use David’s prayer from Psalm 51 as our own prayer of confession. Go on and fill in the blank at the end of the prayer before you start, and then say it out loud to our Father who is listening and ready to forgive you when you confess.


Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions. Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me. Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight… please forgive me for ___________________.


“If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins

and purify us from all unrighteousness.
If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.
My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin.
But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins,
and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.”
1 John 1:8-2:2