REPENT, BELIEVE AND GROW

I have declared to both Jews and Greeks that they must turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus. - Acts 20:21 NIV

Groveling before God while recounting all your sins and promising to never sin again is not repentance, it's just a futile religious exercise that might appease one's conscience till their next sin, after which the cycle repeats itself. It is counterfeit repentance as it puts the focus on the "repent-er" and their ability to change themselves, as if one can do that by sheer will power. I would liken it to a spiritual vicious cycle that sadly, has many believers in its clutches. The very first fruit of this kind of counterfeit repentance is condemnation, which in turns opens the door to all its other cousins like guilt, fear, unbelief, resentment, bitterness and the like, causing one to become ineffective in their witness and stunted in their spiritual growth.

True repentance is changing one's mind to believe and agree with the Word of God. Repentance should be ongoing in the life of a Christian, every time you come into contact with the Word it's an opportunity to repent, seize it and keep growing in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 

When you allow the Word to change the way you think, that is to renew your mind, you are repenting; When you do what the Word says to do, that is proof that you believe the Word, for faith without action is dead! Repenting and believing always go together. Keep on repenting, believing and growing today!