Let’s get rid of shame, friend

One of the biggest enemies of loving yourself is shame.  friend, have you ever struggled with guilt or shame? I have and so have many more people I’ve helped in therapy. Shame and guilt are deadly to our self-esteem. Guilt comes from a lot of places: past mistakes, sins or the enemy of our souls. The Bible tells us Satan is the accuser: “Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: ‘Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Messiah. For the accuser of our brothers and sisters, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down.’” (Revelation 12:10, NIV) Have you ever asked God to forgive you, only to feel guilty moments or days later?  The Bible calls you a saint because Jesus paid the debt for all of your sins. That’s just a truth from the Bible. You are not just forgiven for a few sins or mistakes, but He died once and for all. “And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” (Hebrews 10:10, NIV)   Isn’t that exciting? When you ask for God’s forgiveness, the sacrificial death of Jesus washes you clean of all your sins: ALL!  So, you should feel good about yourself because you’ve been forgiven and cleansed from mistakes. You’ve been made right with God and adopted by Him. You’re accepted in Christ and fully pleasing to Him. In fact, you’re His work of art. “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” (Ephesians 2:10, NIV) I had a huge struggle with my life before Christ until I read this verse: “as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.” (Psalms 103:12, NIV) Christ removed any and all reasons for me to feel badly about myself. To be completely honest with you, I still make mistakes, and I start the process all over again. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (I John 1:9, NKJV) It’s time to be free from shame and guilt, friend. Loving yourself starts with forgiving yourself. Because you’re a miracle.