Stripped of Shame, Clothed in Grace

Unworthy. Unfit. Bound. Ashamed.

These are all of the feelings I felt after committing an act of sin. I felt unworthy of God’s love, unfit to be used by Him, bound by sin, and ultimately I felt ashamed. Unfortunately, this wasn’t the first time. I’d just asked God to forgive me a couple of weeks before for committing a similar act. I began thinking to myself there was no way I could go back and ask God to forgive me again. He wouldn’t take me seriously as my initial prayer of repentance seemed insincere. As a result, I found myself in tears of disappointment, regret, and shame.

It wasn’t long, however, before God intercepted the lies of the enemy that I began to accept as truth. He whispered, “Get back up.” Shortly after, my tears dried; and I began to pray, asking God to forgive me and to help me. Despite me falling prey to a similar act of sin, God knew the condition of my heart. He knew that I was sincerely remorseful. He reminded me that I am human and that this wouldn’t be the last time I messed up. He reminded me that even as a Christian, I would fall again, but He wanted me to know that the most important step after falling is getting back up.

In this moment, I was reminded of the essence of God’s character as depicted in Psalms 103:2-4, 8-12:

Praise the Lord, my soul,
and forget not all his benefits—
who forgives all your sins
and heals all your diseases,
who redeems your life from the pit
and crowns you with love and compassion…

The Lord is compassionate and gracious,
slow to anger, abounding in love.
He will not always accuse,
nor will he harbor his anger forever;
he does not treat us as our sins deserve
or repay us according to our iniquities.
For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is his love for those who fear him;
as far as the east is from the west,
so far has he removed our transgressions from us.

This passage reveals the very nature of God — loving, compassionate, slow to anger, merciful, and gracious. We must hold these truths close to our hearts, because just as the enemy tried to convince me, he wants to convince you that you are unworthy of God’s love and forgiveness, causing you to hide and run away from God. This is the power of shame.

God, however, wants us to run straight into His loving arms when we sin, when we feel unloved, when we feel broken, even when we feel ashamed. He wants us to ask for His help so that His Spirit can equip, empower, and strengthen us to overcome and resist whatever it is that has us bound. When we embrace the truth of who God is and utilize the power He has given us through His Spirt, we are able to walk in the freedom that we have been given as children of God – free from our past, free from sin, and free from bondage.

Romans 8:6-7, reminds us of this truth:

For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin — because anyone who has died has been set free from sin.

If you are currently struggling with feelings of shame, I pray that you make the decision to get back up. I pray that you come to know God for who He is – merciful, gracious, and abounding in love. I pray that you respond to His love and seek Him for forgiveness.   pray that you come out of hiding. I pray that you stop running away from Him and start running towards Him. I pray that as you take these steps of faith, you become stripped of shame and clothed in grace.

Be encouraged,

Imanne