A Simple Way to Dissolve Sin

Denise Jelinek offers a three-step examination of conscience designed to lead to productive action in overcoming common sins.

I am a huge fan of simple and practical ways to make anything easier, especially getting closer to Christ. Recently, when I was preparing for Confession, I was shown a simple way to get closer to God by working on dissolving the common sins in my life.

Many saints advise praying through the “Examination of Conscience” to reflect on how we’ve offended God, in order to repair our relationship and grow closer to Him. If you don’t already have a favorite examen prayer, you can easily obtain one online. Praying with and referencing the Ten Commandments is another method of reflecting on ways we’ve sinned and hurt our relationship with God. Listing our sins is the first part of this process, followed by two additional steps to help take action on eradicating our common sins.

Step 1: List the sins revealed through the examination of conscience.

Step 2: Fill in the blank: “Jesus wants ________.”

Step 3: Ask “What is standing in the way of that?" The answer to that question will reveal the steps needed to let sin dissolve away from your life.

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Step 1 is self-explanatory. Let’s take a deeper dive into steps 2 and 3.

What if you don’t know the answer to what Jesus wants in step 2? Perhaps the answer is to wait, to let Him reveal the answer in His timing. Or, consider what you do know about what Jesus wants.

We know that Jesus loves …

purity of heart
life, and hates destruction or harm to His creation (this includes vices and self-destructive or self-neglecting behaviors)

Knowing that, we can likely guess what Jesus does want.

Finally, in step 3, we get to ask ourselves, “What is standing in the way of that?" This is where our work is revealed.

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Here’s an example of this process in my life:

Step 1. The sin revealed in my examination: prioritizing work and my clients’ needs over time with my husband, kids, and my own well-being.

Step 2. Jesus wants me to have balance in my life and prioritize my family.

Step 3. What is standing in the way of that?

NOT trusting God to help set clear work hours and provide the women He wants me to work with, essentially working from an unsettling “hustle” energy where I never reach “enough.”
NOT communicating with my husband about my work schedule and deadlines.
NOT prioritizing family dinners.
NOT scheduling time to connect with each child.

Click to tweet:
A simple way to get closer to God by working on dissolving the common sins in my life. #catholicmom

After this three-step process, you may be wondering what to do with the information revealed. You have two choices: do nothing or do something. If you pick the latter, you make wonder what to tackle first.

Here are 3 ideas to consider to know where to start:

What is the Holy Spirit putting on your heart to tend to first?
Think about starting with the easiest, most simple thing to change. The one you are ready to erase from your life with little effort. You will gain confidence from quick momentum and be ready to move on to more.
Consider focusing on the one that would help all other things get better. You may notice it seems like that one area consumes a lot of your thoughts. (I find that women can improve many areas of their life when they start tending to their real needs).

Remember, our God is a God of simplicity and peace. The place where you feel peace and simplicity is a perfect place to start!