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“I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not cover my iniquity; I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,” and you forgave the iniquity of my sin. Selah” Psalm 32:5 (ESV)

Tennis has always been my fave sport.  Absolutely love this game – in fact, it’s one of the few sports I actually watch on tv.  Playing on the high school tennis team, I loved to rush the net and smash the ball to an unreachable location for my opponent.

Recently, I decided to play pickleball while on vacation in sunny Florida.  Now, needless to say, I totally did not know what I was doing. My friends and I had never played before and after watching a few YouTube videos, I realized we were making the game harder than intended. Regardless, the tennis player in me decided to rush the net and smash the ball.  Only problem was the pickleball net was lower and very flimsy compared to a tennis net.  End result, I fell over the net with my great shot and found myself all tangled up in the net with a hurt knee.  That sweet friends, was the end of my short-lived pickleball career (at least for now).  Next morning, my knee looked nothing like normal – it was majorly swollen and hurting.  Not a good place to land when you’re on vacation.

Entangled is never our happy place.  Yet, we often land there, don’t we?  Choosing to entertain relationships contrary to our best interests.  Becoming involved in complicated, perplexing and troublesome situations describes it well by Webster.  Giving in to what we want versus obeying God’s direction.

When our lives become entangled with sin, we don’t fall pretty and the recovery isn’t quick (Genesis 4:7). The more we remain interwoven with destructive choices, the harder it becomes to get loose from sin’s dark grip. When we allow truth to be twisted to accommodate our decisions, excuses reign supreme.  Like the smash at the net, we fall hard never knowing the full impact.  Initial pain and heartache surface quickly, and we might even be tempted to think it’s still worth it.  Reality is sin creates a perpetual wounding that lasts longer than we ever dreamed. Bottom line, we don’t know how far sin will take us or the cost.

Sweet friends if we find ourselves caught up in a tangled web of sin, we would be wise to seek God’s help.  By acknowledging our sins, confessing our wrongs and seeking God’s forgiveness we can break free from the enticing web seeking to keep us entangled. And when temptation raises its ugly head, we must be ready for the battle – clothed in the whole armor of God (Ephesians 6).  Praying unceasingly and being watchful of the schemes of the enemy.   Best solution is to maintain our connection with godly friends who aren’t afraid to ask us the hard questions.  With God’s help, we can identify triggers, temptations and come up with a game plan to extinguish sin’s entangling trap – victory is ours for the taking.

“Father Your desire is for us to walk in obedience – to miss the consequences our sin births.  Help us to resist the temptation to do life our way and heed the leading of the Holy Spirit.”

For His Glory

Janet Martin
TRBC Women’s Life