What to do with shame

Nobody likes making mistakes publicly. Sinning and being exposed is even worse. The natural tendency after failure is to feel worthless, to feel shame, isn’t it?  That shame often makes us want to run and hide. There is a better response- turn quickly to the Lord.  Instead of slinking around shamed and miserable, we can seek forgiveness.  We can reject a self-defeating attitude that says, "I am no good,"  to thank Him for ‘amazing grace’ that releases us from guilt.

Look at the love of the Father that the Spirit offers to us in Christ. "Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding." (Ephesians 1:4-8, NLT)  Did you take note of the primary actor in that love?  Yes, it is the Lord God!  He pursues us, not because we are perfect, or even because we are desirable. He chooses us because He is good and gracious.  His love goes beyond pity for us in our sorry sinful state. It is an active love that intervenes to change us. 

I confess that I have failed God and man in some big ways in my life. I’m not proud of those moments, but I refuse to wallow in them. God chose me to receive grace and that’s what I do. "Those who enter into Christ’s being-here-for-us no longer have to live under a continuous, low-lying black cloud. A new power is in operation. The Spirit of life in Christ, like a strong wind, has magnificently cleared the air, freeing you from a fated lifetime of brutal tyranny at the hands of sin and death." (Romans 8:1-2, The Message)  Accepting His forgiveness and forgiving myself lays the foundation for a holy life.

Paul started out as Saul, the Pharisee, religious yet rejecting God. He lived in an ugly parody of righteousness, centered on futile attempts to be good enough for God, that ignored the true state of his soul.  Then, he met Jesus and was shown the depth of his deception and depravity.   Saul, the man with the rich religious heritage, and sorry record of sinfulness, sees the truth that he is, despite his best efforts,' the worst of sinners.'  Does he run and hide?  No way. He goes public with his sin so God’s grace can shine ever more brightly against the backdrop of his failure. He says, "Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst. But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his unlimited patience as an example for those who would believe on him and receive eternal life." (1 Timothy 1:15-16, NIV) 

We can drag around our sins and failures, letting them weigh us down, convinced that though we are going to Heaven, that here on earth we are worthless to God!   
OR, we can let Christ Jesus forgive the sins, restore us from our failures - and become favored children of God, in whom He shows off His power to save. 

This is the Gospel that we celebrate this Advent.

"He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him … Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth." (John 1:10, 12, 14, NIV)

No matter how badly you have failed someone or even God Himself,  no matter how far you may have fallen, there is a Savior whose grace is greater. That is the good news.  Believe it, receive Him, and see what God can do with you! Take a few moments to quiet your heart today. Don’t run from the Spirit, ashamed or afraid because you know your sin.  Instead, open your heart. Own your failure without excuse, then let God's love pour over you. 

Thank Him for the Cross of Christ, where all your sins were fully forgiven!  
Thank Him for the grace that closes the gap between your good intentions and your human tendency to fail.  
Thank Him for loving an imperfect child like you. I thank Him for loving one like me, every day.  

Here is the word from the Word – a prayer. Read it again and again, accepting what it says as true for you:
"I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources
he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit.
Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him.
Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong.
And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should,
how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is.
May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully.
Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.

Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.
Glory to him in the church and in Christ Jesus through all generations forever and ever! Amen." (Ephesians 3:16-21, NLT)

______________________________

Once I was straying in sin's dark valley,
No hope within could I see.
They searched thru heaven and found a Savior,
To save a poor lost soul like me.

O, what a Savior, O, hallelujah,
His heart was broken on Calvary.
His hands were nail-scarred,
His side was riven,
He gave His lifeblood for even me.
What A Savior
Marvin Dalton © 1948. Renewed 1976 Stamps Quartet Music (Admin. by Integrated Copyright Group, Inc.)
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