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My guilt has overwhelmed me like a burden too heavy to bear. Psalm 38:4
Next to anger, guilt is perhaps the greatest crippler of all time. When you consider the fact that fear can often be caused by guilt that only adds to the drama! Guilt comes into our lives when we feel ashamed for an action that we’ve done. Sometimes that guilt is ‘warranted’ because we all make mistakes. Sometimes that guilt comes from the accusations of others. Even if we are innocent of the accusation we can feel guilty about it.
People try to deal with guilt in a variety of ways in order to ease the pain. Some try to ignore the guilt and pretend that whatever it is that makes us feel guilty never really happened. That’s called denial. If I ignore my guilt long enough it will be less painful. That’s not really true, but we believe the lie. Suppressing guilt only keeps it at bay for a time. Eventually it comes back with vengeance.
Others try to deal with guilt by soothing it with a variety of things like new relationships, new toys, new jobs or surroundings. We focus on external things in order to try to ignore the internal pain we feel. When we tire of the old things we simply replace them with new in hopes that we will be satisfied. Using denial and external things to try to cover up guilt never work.
Sometimes people use the ‘blame game’ to deal with their guilt. “Yes, I did that but if he/she hadn’t done this, or if she/he HAD done that, I wouldn’t have done what I did.” Placing blame on others takes the attention off of me and puts it on others. It’s like creating a diversion. The problem with this is that people eventually see though our antics and we end up being the only one that believes our story. People who use the blame game seldom realize that they are the main problem in the healing process.
Following ‘social trends’ rather than God’s Word can also be used to cover guilt. “Everyone else is doing it so it must be okay.” We surround ourselves with people who, like us, haven’t dealt with their guilt. Since they appear to be comfortable in what they do we feel comfortable as well. There is sort of a comfort in mutual misery.
Even religion can be used to cover guilt. We do something wrong and go to God for forgiveness. He willingly forgives us of all our sins. However, we feel so bad about what we have done that we try to do ‘things’ to cover the pain. These can be very good things like church attendance, Bible Studies, volunteering, even being in ministry to try to cover the shame and guilt of our sin. When we struggle with a recurring sin we tend to increase our ‘religious activity’ to deal with the pain. Nothing relieves that pain though and so we revert to the blame game. “It’s not working. It must be Gods fault, or the churches fault, or the fault of those so-called Christians.”
There is nothing you can do to free yourself of the weight of guilt you carry. The longer you carry it the heavier it grows. The more things you try to remove the guilt from your life the heavier your burden grows. The more you regret the more you fret. Sometimes people are so weighed down by the burden of trying to remove the guilt from their lives that they become physically, emotionally or mentally ill. Some even commit suicide to try to remove the pain.
Jesus has the answer to your guilt and the burden you carry. It’s not found in religion. It’s not found in church. It’s not found in relationships, toys or activity. Freedom from guilt comes through Jesus alone and the grace He offers. Hebrews 10:22 says “let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water.”
Jesus not only cleanses the sin, he wants to cleanse the feelings of guilt you carry. Satan and others will want to try to continually remind you of your past mistakes. Tell them that Jesus took care of that on the cross. When guilt attacks take it directly to Jesus. Let Him remind you that YOU ARE FORGIVEN. No questions. No second thoughts. NO MORE BLAME. Say to yourself, ‘Because of Jesus I am not only forgiven of my sin, I am cleansed of my guilt. I will no longer allow guilt to control me and weigh me down. I AM FREE.’
PRAYER: Dear Jesus. I thank you that you look on my heart and not on my actions. I am so sorry for the pain I’ve caused myself, others and you. I’ve made decisions that continue to be hurtful. I continue to struggle with sin. My guilt is ever before me. I ask that once and for all you search my heart and reveal any unconfessed sin. Then I pray that you not only forgive me of my sin, but that you cleanse my guilty conscience. Empower me to live free of guilt regardless of the number of times other people try to remind me of my past. From this day forward I resolve to rely on you to free me from guilt. Amen.
Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. Lamentations 3:22-23
Imagine for a moment your day starting like this.
You groggily reach over to hit the snooze ‘one more time’. A few extra minutes will seem so good. As you do, you notice the room is filled with an eerie sort of a glow. You look over in the corner and notice a glowing shape sitting in the corner. No chair, it’s still sitting in the corner.
Even though you are only half awake and should be scared out of your wits, something you see in the face of this person not only keeps fear away, but peace and love flood your very soul. You’ve never seen an angel before, but you know this is no angel. This….is GOD!
Before you can speak, He does. “Good morning sunshine!” He says in a gentle, yet firm voice.
You stumble for words and the first words from your mouth you desperately wish you could pull back, but it’s too late. “How long have you been here?” What a stupid thing to ask God.
“I’ve always been here. Watching you all night long. Walking by your side during the day. Cherishing every moment we have together. But today I decided you needed a reminder that I’m real and I’m here.” He moves to the side of your bed and sits beside you, placing His hand gently on your shoulder. “I want you to know that I’ve got your day prepared for you. I’ve looked over every moment and know exactly what is going to happen. There will be some things that concern you, some that trouble you and there will be times that you even doubt my existence. But don’t worry. I’m not going anywhere and everything will work out EXACTLY as I have planned.
“Um, okay” You say as a sick feeling comes across your mind. “About yesterday….I didn’t mean to think those thoughts and I don’t know how I ended up on that website, and I never would have said those words if…”
He lifts your head so that you look Him square in the eyes. You have never seen love like this, or understanding, or compassion. “It’s okay. I know. We talked about this last night before you went to bed, remember? It’s a new day now. I love you. Now come on. You know how rush hour can be. We need to get going.”
A little farfetched? From a human standpoint maybe. But right in the middle of the book of Lamentations, a book that lives up to its name. A book full of sorrow and agony, there’s this little tidbit of truth, a gem sparking in the darkness. God loves you. Every night He watches you sleep. He walks with you throughout your day. He hears the words you speak, sees the sights you see, and is part of every thought that crosses your mind.
Regardless of where you take Him or what you let Him see or hear, or how often you completely forget about His presence, He is there watching, guarding and protecting. Every morning He longs for you to spend some time with Him. He loves you and His love starts out fresh, new and hot every day.
PRAYER: Father God, I praise you for the fact of your presence in my life. I worship you for the fact that you have gone on before me in everything that I do and that nothing in my day today, or any day, surprises you. Forgive me for some of the places I’ve taken you, the words I’ve let you hear or the thoughts you’ve been a part of. Thank you for your love. Help me to ‘see’ your presence throughout my day. Amen.
Mike Fisk & Built with Grace 