Some of the deepest and most meaningful conversations happen for me online through iChat.  I won't go into what some may assume is an aversion to "real" connectedness and the reasons for choosing indirect interaction as opposed to face-to-face.  Get over it.  It's real.

Anyway, I was having a conversation a couple weeks ago with a friend and we were talking about life and struggles and sin and church and blogs and whatever.  We were talking about temptations and here's what I wrote...

I'm finding I have to be up front before [I stumble]
like I was always ashamed of the temptation
and so I'd wait
then confess the sin
it's much harder for me to confess the temptation
but that's where the safety is
and that's the part of american church I guess I've been rebelling against
we don't confess our temptations enough because we want people to think we're above it
but there's so much freedom and safety in confessing beforehand
even when it's like... my heart isn't in the right place
and to be able to admit that before you act on it
I don't always get that right for sure but I'm learning

I'm reminded of a statement by Tozer that goes something like this: As humans we try and transcend our humanity and become like God; while God steps down from Heaven and embraces humanity and clothes himself in it through the man, Jesus Christ.

Why are we so afraid to admit our failures?  And why, when we haven't even sinned yet, are we so afraid to admit our frailties in the form of common temptation?

It's pretty simple... the Church should be a safe place to confess our temptations.  Maybe then, we wouldn't be so consumed with creating forced accountability groups where we all sit in a chair and have to confess our sins.