“I can’t get this terrible thing I did out of my head. Can you help me clear my conscience?” While her story was unique, her problem was not.
Over the years, it became obvious to me, as a counselor, that people seeking spiritual and/or emotional help often don’t know how to clear their consciences and start over.
Let’s not forget. To be human is to have a conscience. We’re not just intelligent machines. We’re conscience-crafted creatures made in the image of our Creator. We’re constructed with a built-in capacity to know the difference between what’s right and wrong.
Starting out with that divine-gift of a good conscience doesn’t guarantee you will keep listening to that good voice inside your head and heart. Even the great Apostle Paul struggled with doing what his conscience told him was right. “My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me. 1 Cor. 4:4
From the day we’re born, God gives us positive influencers that reinforce our God-designed conscience—influencers like God’s voice within, his living presence around us, his Holy Word, Christian friends, inspirational music, a caring church family, and many more.
But there are other voices trying to persuade us to follow them. Usually they’re deceptive, powerful, subtle, and convincing. Just as our healthy bodies get sick when harmful bacteria enter and take over, our conscience gets sick and confused when negative voice take control of our minds and hearts.
When our conscience gets confused, we inevitably make bad choices that lead to self-destructive behavior. A life originally built for God’s best gets misdirected for the worst. Getting our conscience back on the God-track, cleaning out the pollution, and regaining God’s plan for our lives, does not happen without a lasting conscience-transformation.
If you sincerely want to make this important change for yourself or your loved one, here’s a critical piece of advice. Learn how to do it. Realistically, it’s going to take more than “want to.” You’re going to need a proven plan and some hard work. But you can do it.
I know you can do it because others have already done it. I have written a step-by-step plan designed to help people make these important changes and keep them permanently. I invite you to read:
Healthy Faith: A Lifestyle Plan to Transform your Head, Heart and Hands. This plan has chapters on understanding your conscience, discerning the voice of God, overcoming temptations, and maintaining an intimate relationship with God and those you love.
I pray that you’ll read the book, start the plan, and find it as helpful as these people did. (Testimonies)
I look forward to hearing from you as to how it helped you. Bill