We’ve been talking a lot about shame in the last few posts. There’s a good reason for that—it’s the most common result of abuse, and one of the most damaging.
Since shame is a feeling of “I am something wrong” while guilt is the feeling of “I’ve done something wrong”, shame permeates our very soul. We feel as though we can’t get past it, can’t over it, or can’t get rid of it. We wear our dishonor like a coat.
Talk about an impossible situation!
Au contraire, my friend! Shame comes from the lies we believe about ourselves. Lies that are planted and perpetuated by our enemy who doesn’t want us to live the full and victorious lives God created for us.
Getting rid of shame is imperative for healing. However, all the positive self-talk in the world can’t remove it. We can bury it (kind of) and we can ignore it (for a little while) but we can’t get rid of it. The only one who can do that is Jesus.
Jesus declared that He is our Healer. He also said that healing belongs to His children. Don’t you qualify? Of course, you do. Once you turn yourself over to Him, you are an heir to all His promises.
ALL OF THEM.
EVERY ONE.
Ready? Let’s get started.
First, ask Jesus to reveal what lie you believe about yourself. That could be lots of different things. Let’s use this common one: I am too bad for Jesus to ever love me.
Now ask Him where that lie started. (This can get a little scary, so do this with a strong friend if you want to.) He might say the lie started when your father said he didn’t love you. We all put our own fathers in the place of God when we’re little, so this lie gets changed to God not loving us.
Next, ask Jesus what the truth is. And that isn’t the truth you think about, it’s the truth He tells you. We can have the entire Bible memorized, but until He speaks to our heart that knowledge stays in our head.
Wait for the answer. It may be in a second or two, or it may be the next day. Don’t think He is refusing to answer you. He won’t. His truth might be something along the lines of “I loved you then and I love you now.”
When His truth reaches your heart, you are probably ready to release the shame to Him. Tell Him. Then do it. And anytime you are picking it up again, put it back into His hands. His hope replaces your shame.
Keep your eyes and your heart turned to Him.
Shame is not who you are!
This is part 19 of a series on abuse recovery
Part 1| Am I Alone in my Pain?
Part 2| Do You Have Hope?
Part 3| Putting Your Hope in God is Safe
Part 4| How Do We Lose Our Hope?
Part 5| Growing up Without Hope
Part 6| Scripture Promises Can Stimulate Hope
Part 7| Hope Can be Found in Journaling
Part 8|Every Journey Begins with This
Part 9| Why Do We Quit Too Soon?
Part 10| Don’t Let These Stop You!
Part 11| Learning Too Much Can Stop Your Progress
Part 12| Is Fear of Change Hindering Your Healing?
Part 13| Are You Afraid You Don’t Deserve Healing?
Part 14| What if God Doesn’t Want Me to Be Healed?
Part 15| What if I Can’t Fight Long Enough for My Healing?
Part 16| Are You Living with Shame from Your Past?
Part 17| Do You Feel Like You Hate Your Own Soul?
Part 18| Shame
all illustrations courtesy of freedigitalphotos.net