Why ask God for forgiveness? Who is He to give it?

I paint a masterpiece. You then scratch/scar/scuff the product of my hard work, something of great value to me. You feel bad and want to apologize. Do you apologize to the painting, or do you apologize to its creator?

At this point, someone could point out that paintings are inanimate, whereas humans feel and experience. Shouldn't, then, the apology be re-directed to the wounded human?

Well, think of it this way: the Painter is greater than the painting; the God of the universe is greater than a human... we are only dust. Just because a specific created thing (a person) happens to be magnificent, unique, and ever so intricate, it doesn't mean that the Creator-creation relationship breaks down. It just means that the Creator is that much more greater (and, therefore, all the more worthy of being asked for forgiveness).

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One part of the claim tends to slip past us unnoticed because
we have heard it so often that we no longer see what it amounts
to. I mean the claim to forgive sins: any sins. Now unless the
speaker is God, this is really so preposterous as to be comic. We
can all understand how a man forgives offences against himself.
You tread on my toes and I forgive you, you steal my money
and I forgive you. But what should we make of a man, himself
unrobbed and untrodden on, who announced that he forgave
you for treading on other men's toes and stealing other men's
money? Asinine fatuity is the kindest description we should
give of his conduct. Yet this is what Jesus did. He told people
that their sins were forgiven, and never waited to consult all the
other people whom their sins had undoubtedly injured. He
unhesitatingly behaved as if He was the party chiefly concerned,
the person chiefly offended in all offences. This makes sense
only if He really was the God whose laws are broken and
whose love is wounded in every sin. In the mouth of any
speaker who is not God, these words would imply what I can
only regard as a silliness and conceit unrivalled by any other
character in history.

—C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity
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Cleaning House after a Chinese Hangover

It's like a hangover, only from Chinese food. Is this what it feels like to have your face injected with Botox? This is my welcoming party into the Fourth of July, the ensuing aftershock of the first 24 hours of visiting Filipino feeding-frenzied (albeit loving) parents. And it goes to show how critical it is to take good care of one's body and not passively let it go by the wayside.

Here's another illustration. On Saturday, my two housemates and I finally had enough. Though probably still habitable by many a young male's standards, we're big boys now and our apartment was mutually recognized as a filth (that's noun, not adjective). One time, I saw a single fly on the kitchen counter and tried to squash it... only to miss and watch it fly back in s l o w m o t i o n to its black hoard of a nest, which was right behind the backboard above our sink. After I swept the hardwood floors of the living room and dining room, you would have thought that we owned a big blue cat or something.

Anyway, after digging (err, not so deep it seems) I found my inner Mr. Mom and re-arranged the first floor with the help of the housemate. I picked up two area rugs from Target, cleaning supplies from Wal-mart, and having been disappointed with the selection of accent furniture at Home Goods, I settled on a simple yet elegant (e.g. it was cheap) coffee table at another Target. Now (I'm surprised to say), that the house (the general living space at least) is much more habitable—cozy even!

I have a greater appreciation now not for things just being clean, but for all the work that actually goes into it! (It was my friend's wife that put those words together for me, but it doesn't make it any less true.) My friend's wife cleans everyday; I'm guessing lots of moms do. Most guys including myself, however, will ask, "Why?"

The male train of thought will most likely rationalize, "Why do something everyday when you can hardly see a difference? I'd rather just let it go, tackle it when I can no longer stand it, and then feel like I accomplished something when it's finished." For a few things (i.e. cleaning the house), I can twistedly and knuckleheadly agree (however painful in the end) with the aforementioned rationale.

When it comes to health, people, and relationships though, a letting-it-go kind of mentality is simply foolish and downright destructive. God says that you should be taking care of your body, and loving others just as much—not putting it on the backburner and then taking care of it later. Take care of it (whatever that thing is) now.

Hm... I need to take care of something.
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