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As fallen human beings, we might strive for perfection, but don't always hit the mark. There is likely never a day in our lives that we can confidently say went perfectly.
This means we are in constant need of reconciliation with God. Certainly we should go to confession on a regular basis, but typically we cannot go to confession every day and have to make our own efforts to repent for our daily sins.
5 Paths of repentance
St. John Chrysostom details in a homily what he calls "five paths of repentance," which help us reconcile with God.
1condemnation of your own sins
A first path of repentance is the condemnation of your own sins: Be the first to admit your sins and you will be justified. For this reason, too, the prophet wrote: I said: I will accuse myself of my sins to the Lord, and you forgave the wickedness of my heart. Therefore, you too should condemn your own sins; that will be enough reason for the Lord to forgive you, for a man who condemns his own sins is slower to commit them again. Rouse your conscience to accuse you within your own house, lest it become your accuser before the judgment seat of the Lord.
2Forgive your enemies
That, then, is one very good path of repentance. Another and no less valuable one is to put out of our minds the harm done us by our enemies, in order to master our anger, and to forgive our fellow servants' sins against us. Then our own sins against the Lord will be forgiven us. Thus you have another way to atone for sin: For if you forgive your debtors, your heavenly Father will forgive you.
3Prayer of the heart
Do you want to know of a third path? It consists of prayer that is fervent, careful and comes from the heart.
4Almsgiving
If you want to hear of a fourth, I will mention almsgiving, whose power is great and far-reaching.
5Humility
If, moreover, a man lives a modest, humble life, that, no less than the other things I have mentioned, takes sin away. Proof of this is the tax-collector who had no good deeds to mention, but offered his humility instead and was relieved of a heavy burden of sins.
