I will declare my iniquity; I will be in anguish over my sin. (Psalms 38:18)

The belief of the world outside is “love means never having to say you’re sorry.” Love – true love – means saying “I’m sorry” all the time. Why? Because, as fallen human beings, all of us mess up from time to time, and the only remedy for those mistakes is to honestly acknowledge our error, ask for forgiveness, and dedicate ourselves to God’s work of repentance.

The false premise behind “love means never having to say you’re sorry” is that if we truly loved one another, such confessions would not be necessary. However, in today’s verse, the psalmist makes commitment to confession. Confession is in many ways simply a declaration of what’s true.

“I’m sorry” are two of the most important words we can say when we err. “I was wrong” may be even better. These words of confession are part of the humbling process that God uses to make us more mature as believers and as marriage partners.

Let us please keep confessing our sins to our spouse, and keep giving assurance that with God’s help we will do better. Don’t buy the notion in the world that saying “I’m sorry” somehow means you don’t really love each other deeply enough.

Confession is important to married love because it acknowledges wrongs committed. It’s also important, I believe, because it powerfully states to your spouse, “when you hurt, I care.”

Q. What steps can we take today to overcome our reluctance to utter the words “I was wrong” “I am sorry” when they are needed?

PRAYER: God, please help my spouse and me to confess wrongdoing to one another, ask for forgiveness, and truly dedicate ourselves to Your plans for change.

Hope this devotion helps us to introspect ourselves and ask God to give us the grace to grow in the area of saying “sorry” and asking forgiveness when we have hurt or wronged our spouse.