Steps Toward Forgiveness

Claire Black: Welcome to True Girl, a podcast for girls and their moms. I’m Claire Black. This season, we’ll explore God’s truth for us, one step at a time. Lace up your sneakers.You’re about to grow closer to each other and closer to Jesus!

We’re starting season 20 of the True Girl podcast, and this one’s called “Songs for the Climb.” We’re gonna learn what to do when we feel really sinful . . . and all of us feel that way sometimes. Girls face lots of different kinds of guilt and shame from things like being mean to our brothers and sisters, or lying to our parents, or gossiping about a friend. We all sin. But God’s Word teaches us that no matter what we do, we can be forgiven.

Dannah Gresh and Staci Rudolph are in Israel, and they have their walking shoes on. They’re about to climb the very same uphill path that Jesus would have taken into the temple of Jerusalem. At the end of the podcast, Dannah will invite you to join in a mom-daughter Scripture memory challenge, so stay tuned.

Now, let’s get moving for the first episode of this season, called, “Steps Toward Forgiveness.” Here’s your cohost, Staci Rudolph.

Staci Rudolph: Hey, friends. I’m Staci, live on location at the Southern Steps just outside of Jerusalem, here with True Girl founder, Dannah Gresh. 

Dannah Gresh: Hey there, True Girl! Or should I say, shalom, since we’re in Israel. I’m glad you’re here today.

Staci: Welcome to the Jerusalem Archeological Park. Pay no attention to that noise in the background. We are, afterall, at one of the major tourist attractions in ancient Israel.

That big old pile of rocks behind me, those crumbling white columns, and the massive steps—old as they look—are really a treasure here in Jerusalem! That, my friend, was the entrance to the temple mount. This amazing location is the steps that led to the first Jewish temple which you read about in the Old Testament and the second temple, written about in the New Testament.

Dannah: Staci, this is, well, it’s absolutely thrilling to be here today.

Staci: Yeah, it is! I mean, Jesus may have walked right where we’re standing! Notice the irregular widths and depths and placement of the steps. That’s not just from aging, friend. The tour guides here at the Southern Steps will tell you that Jewish tradition communicates it was designed like that on purpose. It forced Jewish pilgrims to walk mindfully and deliberately as they approached the entrance to the temple and the presence of the living, loving God of the universe!

So, I prepped my geography lesson, but why are we here today, Dannah? You flew me all the way to Israel and said, “We have to go to the Southern Steps!”

Why?

Dannah: To explore one of the psalms of ascent.

Staci: A psalm of what?

Dannah: Ascent . . . as in an uphill climb. A psalm of climbing up a hill.

Staci: So ya said. Oh! Like this one.

Dannah: Not like this one. THIS ONE!

This is the very hill Jewish girls (and boys and men and women) climbed during three annual pilgrimage feasts, including Passover. And they had songs for the climb.

When we read Psalms 120–134, the first words we see are “psalm of ascent.” They were instructions. Jewish travelers sung these songs as they went to Jerusalem for the three annual feasts. 

These were the songs they sang as they climbed these very steps!

Staci: Ya mean the psalms of ascent was their playlist?

Dannah: Something like that, Staci.

Staci: How about that? Ancient Jewish road trip tunes!

Dannah: Yeah, but they didn’t have my Pilot or your Highlander. They walked the whole way . . . up!

Staci: You did mention the “up” part a time or two already Dannah.

Dannah: Picture it with me: just imagine a dusty road beneath your feet.

Staci: I do not have to imagine! Have you seen the color of my kicks? They were white when we started out!

Dannah: Sorry, Staci. You join a stream of fellow travelers, all heading toward the holy city of Jerusalem. Families walk together, children are darting in and out of the crowd. 

Staci: I can just hear those kids saying, “Are we there yet?”

Dannah: Step after step, you climb—because Jerusalem is always up. And the air is filled with the sound of bleating of lambs. 

[Sound: lamb bleating]

Staci: Well, what do ya say? Where did that little guy come from?

Dannah: The Passover meal is near. That pure, spotless lamb will be sacrificed—blood poured out, reminding every Jewish girl (and the boys) of the night God delivered His people from slavery.

Staci: We read about that in the book of Exodus. It’s when Moses led God’s people out of Egypt.

Dannah: Yes! And every year, the Jewish people came here to Jerusalem to remember how God saved them from slavery.

The air is also filled with voices rising in song:

[Singing]

Staci: Shear-a-what?

Dannah: Shir-ha-ma-lot. That means psalm of ascent.

Staci: Of course it does!

Dannah: We can read the translated words in Psalm 130, that mean psalm of ascent. Psalm 130 is my favorite of the psalms of ascent because I learned one of the most important lessons in my walk with Jesus. 

Staci: Testify!

Dannah: Oh, I think I will.

You see, one day I was listening to a worship song, and in the middle of it a woman’s voice began to read some of the words of Psalm 130.

If you, Lord, kept a record of sins,
Lord, who could stand?
But with you there is forgiveness.

Staci: Well, that’s a pretty basic truth of the Christian faith, Dannah. We sin. That separates us from God. God didn’t want to be separated from us, so He sent His only Son, Jesus, to die as punishment for our sins. And when we ask Him to, God forgives our sins because Jesus paid for them.

Are you telling me you didn’t know that yet when you heard those words?

Dannah: Uhm, in my head I knew those words, I did! But I didn’t feel it. It wasn’t in my heart. Now, I heard those words at a time in my life that I felt really sinful.

Staci: Aw, Dannah, that’s sad.

Dannah: Yeah, it was. When I heard the words, “If you kept a record of our sins, who could stand?” Well, it was amazing. I realized that someone else felt sinful like me! Weighed down by the heaviness of it like they couldn’t even stand up . . . and fearing that maybe God was keeping track of all of it?

Staci: I know I’ve felt really embarrassed and ashamed of my sin. I wanted to hide it.

Dannah: This writer of Psalm 130 felt that way, too, Staci.

Staci: But . . . that wasn’t the end. You just said these words, “But with you—with God— there is forgiveness!”

Dannah: Yeah. With God there is forgiveness! Full forgiveness. No record kept of my lying, my cheating, the bad words I’ve said, the times I’ve been mean to someone, or gossipped . . .

Staci: Hey, hey! Are you just listing all the sins I’ve done?

Dannah: I think they’re all the sins we’ve all done! And, well, I get letters from True Girls all the time who feel bad about their sin. They feel the embarrassment you mentioned. They feel the weighed down feeling this psalmist writes about. 

And ya know what I think?

Staci: Tell me.

Dannah: I think it’s kind of the same feeling we get when we have to climb a big ginormous hill like this. It’s more of a spiritual and emotional feeling than a physical feeling, but they’re sort of similar. We believe the lie that we have to WORK hard to get our sins forgiven. But that’s not how it works!

Still, just like walking up this steep hill with a heavy pack of supplies, we walk through life with like an invisible backpack of the weight of our sin.

Staci: Ok. But, tell me how singing about that made them feel better? Was it kind of like a confession?

Dannah: Well, I think it was kind of like confessing, but also professing—or saying what is true about God. As they sang Psalm 130, they were remembering, “I’m sinful.” And they were remembering, “God forgives.” Because it’s easy to remember our sin and hard to remember God’s forgiveness.

The same God who rescued His people out of Egyptian slavery, rescues me out of enslavement to my sin!

Staci: Oh, that’s a word picture! Sin does feel like enslavement sometimes. We can be trapped in the same bad behaviors and have a hard time stopping.

Ya know, when I have a hard time remembering God’s forgiveness, a verse I think of is this: “As far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us.” That’s Psalm 103:11–12.

Dannah: I love that verse! Think about it: the east and west can never meet!

Staci: Ever!

Dannah: That’s how far God throws our sins away. Now, can we talk about those lambs.

Staci: The pure white ones? On the trail with the Jewish pilgrims?

Dannah: Yes! Those tired, weary people who were climbing the dusty hill as they sang this song, were surrounded by pure, spotless lambs to be sacrificed. They looked forward to a sacrifice that reminded them of God’s rescue.

But Staci, we don’t have to climb hills or sacrifice lambs any more to experience God’s forgiveness or to remember it. We look BACK and see Jesus—the spotless Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.

Staci: Wow!

Dannah: Psalm 130 changed the way I walk through my relationship with Jesus, Staci. It’s why I’m inviting all my True Girl moms and daughters to join me in memorizing it this month.

Staci: Ah, I’m seeing what you’re up to! The sneakers. The trail. It’s time for another Holy Girl Walk, huh?

Dannah: Yep. This time I’m inviting everyone to walk with me and memorize all or a portion of Psalm 130. Why? To remember that our sin might be big, but Jesus’ forgiveness is so much bigger! Let’s walk it and say it out loud, and crush that heavy weight of sin that makes us feel like we can’t stand up.

This is really important to me. I’m heartbroken that so many girls feel like God loves them less when they sin. It’s just not true! He loves us. Period. And when we do sin, He forgives.

Staci: So lace up, True Girl. You don’t have to be on the Southern Steps to join Dannah in this month’s Holy Girl Walk. Your own backyard trails or city streets will do.

Dannah: You can ask your mom to follow True Girl on social media. We’ll have some prompts there every day to energize you for the walk and tell you what verses to memorize. It’s all starting Monday, November 3. 

Staci: And join us next time for a sunrise Holy Girl Walk. You’re gonna want to get up early and see it, like us. Because Psalm 130 teaches us something important that helps us remember the thing that God dishes out liberally when we sin: mercy! Mercy is a real important word when it comes to feeling forgiven. And, well, the sunrise teaches us something cool about mercy.

Okay, Dannah, what do ya say we scale these steps, even though we don’t have to! 

Dannah: Let’s do it, friend!

Claire: True Girl, do you ever feel sinful? You’re not alone! We all feel that way because we all sin—every one of us. But with God there is forgiveness. Isn’t it helpful to remember that? No sin you’ve ever committed is bigger than God’s forgiveness.

If you’re feeling really sinful, it’s a good idea to tell your mom or dad. They’ve felt that way, too. And they can help you! You don’t have to carry the weight of that all alone.

Well, I hope you’ll take Dannah up on the mom-daughter Holy Girl Walk! That’s just what we call it when you walk together and memorize Scripture. This month, we’re challenging you to memorize Psalm 130, or a portion of it, as you learn more about God’s forgiveness. That doesn’t sound too complicated, right? But to learn more about the Holy Girl Walk challenge, visit MyTrueGirl.com.

Oh, while you’re there, be sure to learn about the True Girl Subscription box. Each one contains devotionals, mom-daughter activity ideas, scripture memory cards, and other fun things to help you remember the lessons you’ve learned. Right now, we’re shipping the Gratitude Box, just in time for Thanksgiving. Subscribe today to get yours sent right away!

Then, come back for the next episode of the True Girl podcast, when Dannah and Staci will be rising with the sun to learn about God’s mercy!

The True Girl podcast is produced by Revive Our Hearts, calling women of all ages to freedom, fullness, and fruitfulness in Christ.

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