A few weeks ago, when I went to confession, as I approached the priest sitting in the back of the church, he said, “it is good to see you again.” In that moment, it was as if Jesus Himself was saying this. Anytime we approach Jesus in the sacrament of reconciliation, it is a good thing and Jesus desires to pour out His love and mercy upon us.
Whether it’s been two weeks, two years, twenty years, or somewhere in between since you’ve last been to confession, Jesus welcomes you with open arms to receive His forgiveness, love and mercy and He is always glad to see you. Whether you receive the sacrament regularly or whether it’s been years, He never tires of seeing you show up. Your sins are not a burden to Jesus, even the sin that you keep confessing every time.
When we show up with a sorrowful heart, truly sorry and with the intention not to commit the sins again, Jesus forgives us. In fact, He wants to forgive us, if we want to receive it. The graces of the sacrament are so powerful and help us stay close to Jesus.
There is never a bad time to go to confession. But, now that it is Advent, it is a particularly good time to seek out the sacrament. If we want to truly be able to prepare our hearts to fully receive Christ and rejoice in His coming at Christmas, we must have hearts that are cleansed and pure. We must have hearts that are not weighed down and full of sin, but rather open, with space for His love and His light.
Jesus deeply desires to be close to each and every one of us. Do we desire to be close to Him? If so, we will seek out His forgiveness and mercy so that we can be drawn closer. In this season of anticipation and preparation, may we all take the time to go to confession and to properly prepare our hearts. When we do, Jesus will surely say to us, “it is good to see you again.”
Faith and The Good Stuff 