Let It Go

I have recently been called to the throne of grace where Christ wants me to surrender the guilt and shame that I deserve. Yes, you read that right. I deserve the torture of guilt and shame. I deserve to be punished for my rebellion against God, the pain I caused others, and the ugliness that I produced through my life of sin, and Christ wants me to let it go. People have told me that the inability to forgive myself is rooted in pride, but that message never resonated. It certainly never inspired me to forgive myself. If anything it filled me with more sorrow. In complete transparency, that explanation feels cold and academic. It sounds more like dead religion than freedom in Christ. Allow me to explain.

God says that all men have sinned and deserve death. I agree, which is why I have not been able to trade my guilt and shame for His grace and mercy. I am not trying to resist mercy; I don’t know how to receive it because I expect to get what I deserve. The inability to receive mercy is rooted in brokenness, not pride. That being said, overcoming guilt and shame is still an act of self-denial. It still requires a trip to Calvary, but we must approach the throne of grace and ask for what we truly need for the journey. I will always need God to help me combat pride, but to overcome guilt and shame I need Him to lighten my load and remove the weight of sins I have confessed, made amends for, and repented of. For whatever reason, I cannot drop the weight, but if I surrender, He can remove it. However, placing the guilt of pride on top of the guilt and shame I already carry is not lightening my load. It adds more weight! Let us spur one another on toward greater faith, not condemnation. Let us lighten each other's load and aspire to perfect trust in the grace and mercy of Christ. We need God to fill us with an abundance of faith to receive the mercy He poured out on Calvary. We need to trust that the sacrifice of Christ was enough to settle our debts and set us free from the punishment we deserve. Lord, help us on our journey of repentance by teaching us to inspire one another toward faith. Remove our guilt and shame and fill us with faith to drink deeply from Your cup of mercy.

If you are ready to let go of the guilt and shame that is keeping you from experiencing the fullness of freedom in Christ, please contact us.