Memorize these verses as a family:

Psalm 32:3: When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. 

Psalm 32:5b: …I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord” — and you forgave the guilt of my sin.

Listen. Talk with your family about times that you did something wrong and tried to keep it secret. Ask: Why do we try to hide the bad things that we do? 

Let’s listen to the first time ever that a person did something wrong and what happened after. Read Genesis 2:15-17. What is the one thing God tells the man (Adam) not to do?

Read Genesis 3:1-6. How does Satan get the man and the woman (Adam and Eve) to do the one thing God told them not to do? What lies does Satan get them to believe about God?

Read Genesis 3:7-10. What do Adam and Eve realize after they eat the fruit? Who do they hide from? Why?

But here is the problem. Hiding from God and hiding the bad things we do is not good for us. Here is what can happen: Read Psalm 32:3. What happens if we keep our bad things secret?

We are afraid to get into trouble when we do something wrong. But it is also bad for us to keep it secret. What do we do? Here is what God promises: Read Psalm 32:5. 

What does God promise to do for us if we are honest and tell him what we did wrong? 

Respond. If hiding the bad things we do is bad for us, and if we can trust God’s promise to forgive us if we are honest with him, then what will we do when we do something wrong? Have a conversation about how we can be honest with God as a family. Talk about how you can apologize to the person that you may have hurt. 

Share. What did you learn that you will share with someone else? Who will share it with?