Are you a check-list person? I once heard Mike Greenberg (of Mike and Mike on ESPN radio in the morning) talk about the obsessive to-do list that he keeps in his journal. Not only does he go through the trouble to create little boxes next to his tasks to check off once completed, he said he actually writes things down on his list that he has already completed just so that he can "officially" check them off his list.

I'm not sure if it's just a guy thing, but whenever I'm faced with a problem, I want a list of steps that I can take to solve the problem. My goal is to get problems solved quickly so that I can pretend that they never existed in the first place. This seems to be a great strategy in some areas of life like work or school. When problems arise here, they're just a quick intervention away from being solved and forgotten about.

Biblical Jews seem to be great at making lists. Just do X + Y - Z to ensure that you end up on the right side after the bomb drops. The guy side of me likes this - put me in control and let me problem-solve my way through life. I know I might not be able to make it out of every problem on top, but hey, batting 30% is considered killing it in the majors. Surely I could better than that, right?

One to-do list that I've struggled with over the years deals with repentance. I almost wish we had some of the ancient guidelines to go by today. Let me go and kill something (sparrows, sheep, bulls), say a certain number of prayers, and be able to 'feel' like I am back good with God. But I'm not an animal farmer (though other school teachers might debate the definition) or a good enough hunter to make animal sacrifices a viable option for the number of times that I'd need to repent of my stupid, sinful nature during the course of the day. Nor am I all that good at memorizing long passages or capable of focusing on them for the amount of time that might be prescribed. So those probably would not provide much solace. So what can I do? What list can I go by? Does the Bible give any sort of approach to repentance that I can use to feel like I've truly repented?

Recently, a group of friends and I read through the book of Hosea together. This book is nothing if nor a plea for repentance. From these pages came the following:
Hosea 12:6
“So you, by the help of your God, return,
hold fast to love and justice,
and wait continually for your God.”

And there it is: a check-list! Let's break it down. Step 1. Notice that the list has a preface- "by the help of your God". True repentance starts with prayer and God's help. So, God is the one actually helping us repent well and return to Him. Step 2. With God's help, we are now to "hold fast to love and justice". Here is where your faith in action comes in. A sign of repentance is someone who is focused on love and justice for those with whom they are in contact (your kids, parents, spouse, co-workers, friends, neighbors). This is something that we can actually inventory throughout the day and check off. Step 3. And finally, "wait continually for your God". The last one might not be a box that you can check off every day, but rather over the seasons of life. What I love about step 3 is that it is an ongoing, never-ending step.

One final thought- I've often found myself wanting to feel like something's changed in my life after repenting. During these times, I'm fond of the phrase "feelings follow action".