Is it repentance if I sin just this once and never do it again?
Question:
There is an assignment that I was supposed to complete, and I had ample time to do it, but I didn't, which I admit was wrong of me. I look to change this attitude in the future. The root cause is social media. I know I must repent of that and not spend too much time on it. I now have to handle this assignment, as well as other assignments, and there are only a few days left to submit them all before tests and exams start.
I found someone who can do the assignment for me. They could handle that while I focus on the other assignments. What I worry about is that I might have to admit I wrote that assignment myself, when in reality, someone else did it for me, which would obviously be a lie.
The thing is, if I don't have that assignment written for me, I will fail and receive a bad grade, and my parents will scream at me, deeming me an embarrassment, the biggest failure on the planet, and never amount to anything, etc. They used to do even worse when I was younger, which still causes me a lot of anxiety and fear. So, while I do not want to disobey God, the situation with my parents is also something I do not want to go through.
Does it count as a genuine repentance if I only do it that way just this once, not to sin, but to avoid trouble (although I pray to God to help me avoid sin)? I already acknowledge that the way I have been doing things in the past is wrong and sinful. After this one thing, I will cut off social media or get it under control; and never ask someone to do for me something I was supposed to do, doing it myself and praying to God for help instead, and being diligent, changing my lifestyle to truly reflect that which follows Jesus.
Answer:
Repentance occurs when an individual who has been sinning realizes they were wrong and makes a significant change in attitude and behavior to cease their sinful actions. "For behold what earnestness this very thing, this godly sorrow, has produced in you: what vindication of yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what longing, what zeal, what avenging of wrong! In everything you demonstrated yourselves to be innocent in the matter" (II Corinthians 7:11). You show none of these characteristics. You are planning to sin. You think that the situation justifies sinning.
Turning in a paper with your name on it, but which you have not written, is lying. It doesn't require someone asking you for it to become a lie.
Yes, you'll get into trouble because you were lazy about doing your assignments. Sins have consequences. Perhaps you'll start maturing and realize this.
The proper way to handle being late on several assignments is to order them by priority and time to complete. The ones that make the biggest impact on your overall grade should be done first. Since there is limited time, you work on the shorter ones first to complete more of them. Assignments that cannot be turned in late come before assignments that give you a penalty for being turned in late. It may lower your grades, but then you spend the remainder of your classes working to improve your grades and doing extra credit where possible.
