“Maturity is when you're able to say, 'It's not just them. It's me.”

“But the man who is not afraid to admit everything that he sees to be wrong with himself, and yet recognizes that he may be the object of God's love precisely because of his shortcomings, can begin to be sincere. His sincerity is based on confidence, not in his own illusions about himself, but in the endless, unfailing mercy of God.” - Fr. Thomas Merton O.C.S.O. (1915 – 1968) was a Trappist monk and an American Catholic writer

Gospel text (Lk 11:29-32): As the crowd increased, Jesus began to speak in this way, «People of the present time are evil people. They ask for a sign, but no sign will be given to them except the sign of Jonah. As Jonah became a sign for the people of Nineveh, so will the Son of Man be a sign for this generation. The Queen of the South will rise up on Judgment Day with the people of these times and accuse them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and here there is greater than Solomon. The people of Nineveh will rise up on Judgment Day with the people of these times and accuse them, for Jonah's preaching made them turn from their sins, and here there is greater than Jonah».

Jesus has not come “to call the righteous to repentance but sinners” (Luke 5:32). That’s all of us! His invitation is wide and generous. Whether we have committed horrible sins or just told little white lies, he asks us to come clean—and to come to him. He wants to shower us with his mercy, but he needs us to take the first step toward him in repentance.

As we come to Jesus with humble honesty about how we have fallen short, he will take care of the rest. This simple, honest confession to a Catholic priest, “I have sinned,”..........................

That brief moment, when we are exposed before the Lord, is a moment of great joy for him. We have come back to him, and now he can embrace us, forgive us, and heal us!