Comfort in Communal Confession

I have really grown to love the communal prayer of confession during worship. That might seem a little strange...

I came back to church in 2003, and for a few Sundays, I sat outside in the narthex and didn’t want to come inside the sanctuary. I felt that’s where all the “good” or “holy” people were allowed to worship, and I was just a sinner who didn’t deserve to worship in the sanctuary. It sounds absurd as I type it out, but that was how I felt.

I remember one Sunday, sitting in the narthex and praying the prayer of confession, and I realized that I wasn’t the ONLY one praying it. We were ALL praying it. Me, the sinner in the narthex. Them, all the saints in the sanctuary. The pastors. The choir. Everybody. I remember it SO VIVIDLY. It was that very moment when I picked my things up and slipped into the back of the sanctuary. Knowing that we all prayed a confession together was so life-giving for me. I realized that I wasn’t the only one who needed to confess my sin. We all need it. We all need it every time we worship.

I felt as though I wasn’t alone. I wasn’t an outcast. I was simply human, just like everyone else. Ever since that moment, I have had a deep and abiding love for our time to confess during worship each week. I have learned that confession - and God's gracious forgiveness - can change us in beautiful ways. Peace, friends.