"What's in Your Kitchen Sink?"

One of the many things that I admire about my husband is that he is a very clean person. He stays on top of cleaning the house, and especially the kitchen. Looking at the bottom of a clean, shiny sink is always a good feeling. This encourages me to clean the dishes right away rather than putting them off. Discussing this makes me think of the term, “kitchen sink communication.” Individuals will store up all their emotions (just like dirty dishes in a sink) and pile it on someone all at once. I'm sure we have all caught ourselves doing this at one time or another. People could wait days, months or even years to disclose information. However, it is better to refrain from this, and release our emotions in the moment to express how we are feeling. Just as it is better to do the dishes, instead of waiting for them to clean themselves.

I find that it is easy to “kitchen sink communicate” with God. Often times, we wait and wait until we are ashamed of our behavior or sin to come and confess to Him.“ I confess my iniquity; I am troubled by my sin (Psalm 38:18).” We release it all at once, and find ourselves feeling somewhat better. Although, what does this do to our relationship with God?

When we procrastinate with expressing our emotions to God, we miss out on the spiritual healing that He wants us to experience in that point in time. James 5 instructs us to “confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.” It is inevitable that we will sin. I John 1:8-10 states, “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 the word has no place in our lives.”

Our Father knows we will sin, but how we handle it is our choice. Confession should not evoke feelings of guilt, obligation or routine. Rather, it can be seen as a positive way to communicate with God and maintain a healthy relationship.