"Instead of some sort of penance, we're called to confess our sin as best we can (though it will always be lousy) and appeal to God's mercy on the basis of what Christ did for us, not on the basis of "I really mean it", or "I really promise to", or "I vow this or vow that". That's all out the window.  You're utterly without excuse and without the energy to promise anything. You appeal to nothing but God's mercy in Jesus. That's it. That's the only thing you can plead. It's like the old seminary professor once said, "adverbs are the great enemy of the gospel". We hear things like "I deeply repent" or "I am heartily sorry".  Bah! We repent in a half-assed way at best. We're only sort of sorry. Even our confession sucks. And yet the gracious God in Jesus Christ says to us, "Be of good cheer son, your sins are forgiven."    - Rod Rosenbladt

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