Romans 8:1
Not that long ago, my life looked anything but godly. I spent my college years like a walking stereotype: the semi-goody-two-shoes Christian girl who goes to college, joins a sorority, and turns into a party girl.
Then for years after, I lived in shame.
I felt like if anyone knew my mistakes, they would write me off. When I compared my past to others’, I felt like mine was so much worse. And when I slipped back into old habits, I beat myself up for days.
If you’ve ever felt this way, you’re not alone. In all the hiding, and sometimes self-hatred, it’s easy to start believing that God couldn’t redeem any of it. Then it becomes even easier to believe that where you are right now is a direct result of what you’ve done.
ššš ššµš¶š¹š² ššµš®šŗš² ššµšæš²š®šš²š»š šš¼ ššš²š®š¹ šš¼ššæ š½š®šš, š¶š š±š¼š²š š»š¼š š“š²š ššµš² š³š¶š»š®š¹ šš®š š¶š» šš¼ššæ ššš¼šæš.
Today’s verse
reminds us what is true:
“Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who
are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1).
In Christ, you are free from having to hide in shame.
While we can know in our heads that this is what the Bible says, it feels more challenging to believe in our hearts that it’s true. So if we find ourselves stuck in shame or believing we have to earn the blessings we long for, where do we go from here?
We turn to what’s true. We open our Bibles and find out what God says about the lies we believe. I’ve found three simple steps to do this:
š. šš°šøš»š¼šš¹š²š±š“š² ššµš®š š¶š š® š¹š¶š².
If it
contradicts God’s Word, it’s not true. Sometimes we need a friend to remind us
of this, so send the text or make the phone call, and ask someone you trust if
you’re believing a lie.
š®. š„š²š½š¹š®š°š² ššµš² š¹š¶š² šš¶ššµ ššµš®š ššµš² šš¶šÆš¹š² šš®šš š¶š ššæšš².
(And there’s
no shame in Googling to find a verse if you don’t know where to start looking.)
šÆ. š„š²š½š²š®š ššµš² ššæšššµ šš»šš¶š¹ š¶š š³š²š²š¹š šæš²š®š¹.
Which
sometimes feels crazy, but eventually it sticks. And then the next time the lie
creeps back in, the truth more quickly comes to mind. If you start there, I
think you’ll find when the enemy whispers in your ear that this is all your
fault or you’ve missed it or it’s too late, you can tell him and yourself the
truth:
God’s goodness does not change based on your decisions.
He is sovereign
(Proverbs 16:9; Colossians 1:17).
He loves to redeem His people's pasts and
mistakes (Ephesians 1:7-9).
Regardless of your past, Jesus makes a way for
refuge in Him. There’s no wrong you’ve done that cannot be forgiven. He is
safe. All you have to do is run to Him.
God, thank You for the forgiveness that
comes from faith in Jesus. I praise You that I no longer walk in shame from my
past. Help me identify the lies shame tries to tell me and replace them with
truths from Your Word. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
- Meghan Ryan Asbury
Provided by
"Proverbs 31 Ministries"