Tiger Woods recently stood before the cameras in a relatively small room and before a group of people made up of family, friends, and a contingent of reporters, to offer an apology for his numerous moral transgressions. At times it seemed as though he was truly broken over his repeated indiscretions and at times as though he was staging for the cameras and possibly his sponsors. Since his confession, people have vocalized very strong opinions as to whether they felt his apology was genuine or not. I know that he hurt a lot of people, but the problem I see with holding such strong opinions is that no one is really capable of knowing the depth of his sincerity. If only God can see the heart, then only God can know the intent of his actions that day. What should be of greater concern to Christians is the fact that Tiger intends on turning to his religion of Buddhism for help when the One he needs is Jesus Christ!

This whole matter started me thinking about what it truly means to be "broken" over our sins. Another high profile celebrity once faced a moral scandal and a similar public relations nightmare. His name was King David. After his adulterous affair with Bathsheba, he tried to cover up his sin with more equally deplorable actions that ultimately led to Bathsheba's husband being killed. It wasn't until about a year later that David was confronted by the Prophet Nathan and his sin finally exposed. Following the logic of some opinions I've heard concerning Tiger Woods, you might assert that David was only sorry because he got caught, since he didn't acknowledge his sin willingly. But, the scripture is clear that God accepted David's confession and forgave him his transgressions.

Why was David's confession acceptable to the Lord? Among several things that could be mentioned, it is notable that he was truly broken over his sins. Listen to what he says: "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and a contrite heart—These, O God, You will not despise." (Psalm 51:17)

For a long time I had trouble picturing how this "brokenness" was to be applied to the confession of people's personal sins. My problem was that I thought of a "broken and a contrite heart" like you think of a broken vessel of clay that has been shattered into hundreds of little pieces. But, that's not the "brokenness" God intends us to see in this confession.

Instead of a crushed or shattered vessel, the idea is more that of an animal whose wild nature is broken, like what happens in the taming of a horse. When a horse isn't broken, it tries to throw the rider off its back. But when it reaches the place of brokenness, the horse surrenders to the rider and quits fighting against him so he can be guided wherever the rider wishes to lead him. In a similar way, we know the genuineness of our own confessions when we stop fighting God and surrender to His will.

To only be sorry that you got caught is to be like a "bucking bronco" who refuses to surrender to the control of its rider. God wants us to have "a broken and a contrite heart." That's the place where our self-will dies and His controlling will dominates.

Focus On Christ: 2010

Have you caught the vision for 2010 yet? By now you've already made your New Year's resolutions and hopefully you're off to a good start. But have you fervently prayed about how you can actively pursue a closer relationship with God? How can you grow spiritually in 2010? Who will you reach? With whom will you share the love of Christ? What will you do this year that will have an everlasting effect?

We recently discussed how our vision for 2010 was to "make as many disciples of Christ as we can, as fast as we can, in as many ways as we can, in as many places as we can, for as long as we can." Have you given much thought to how you would help the church to execute this goal? Your help is vital, but first things first.

In order to be effective for Christ we need to focus on Christ. If we aren't careful, our spiritual eyesight can become blurred or even misdirected so that we no longer have a clear view of the Savior. One symptom of this out-of-focus living is arguments between believers over non-essentials, preferences, and secondary issues that are not central to our primary mission. It is only when we become focused on Christ that we can carry out the Great Commission and fulfill our true purpose.

How is your focus? Is it fixed on something that doesn't really matter, something that holds no eternal value? Are there people passing by you every day who are in danger of plunging into the abyss but you are too busy with some non-issue to give them words of eternal life? Or maybe you've been trying to improve your focus, but you need help to make it better. We must bring Christ plainly into view so that our love and devotion will become centered on Him. Unless we make it our highest priority to "... love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind" (Matt. 22:37), we will not be focused on the right things, and our ministries will lack passion and be ineffective.

Just focus on Christ. Allow yourself to be consumed by His sacrificial, overwhelming love. Rest in the assurance of His abounding grace and mercy. Reflect on His many blessings. Praise Him for His promises and provision. When we bask in His glory we will inevitably come to the point where we can no longer hold it in. We will be compelled to share the love of Christ with our neighbors, just as we were commanded to do. In order to make as many disciples of Christ as we can, as fast as we can, in as many ways as we can, in as many places as we can, for as long as we can, we must make sure our focus is on the one who saves!

So, again ... have you caught the vision for 2010? Do you see how and where you can be used to win souls for Christ? Are you focused on Christ? You have the ability to make an everlasting effect on each soul that you come into contact with. Focus on the eternal. Yield yourself to the Lord and allow Him to use you in whatever capacity He needs.