I don’t know you. I don’t know your financial status, religion, political party, occupation, or demeanor, but I know things about you. I know that you have made decisions in your life that you would later regret. I know that you are a good person, but you have done things that you are ashamed of. I know that at some point of your life, you have been responsible for ugly situations that a mere apology couldn’t fix. I know that you have secrets you hope will never be exposed, because the person you were when you did that thing back then is not the person you are now.
How can I be so sure?
Simple. I have done the same. So has the person in the car next to you at the stop light, the person making all the important decisions at your place of employment, and the person cleaning up after everyone leaves. So has the person standing near you in line, the person who serves you at the restaurant, the person you pass on the sidewalk, and the person sitting in front of you at church. Yes, even the person standing behind the pulpit.
Everyone.
Your situation may seem desperate. Embarrassing. Lonely. Depressive. You may think this doesn’t happen to other people in your social circles, so you live your life a bit guarded, afraid that if anyone found out, they would think less of you. You don’t want to ask for help, because that would be admitting that there is a problem and leave you vulnerable.
Let me stop you right there.
Please hear this… you are not alone. There are people all around you hiding the same mistakes that they are too embarrassed to admit. Luckily, the mistakes of your past do not have to be what defines you now.
Did you hear that?
It doesn’t matter if it happened thirty years ago, last month, or just this morning. There is NOTHING you have done that cannot be redeemed.
Nothing.
People may be more reluctant, but there is not a mistake you have made, crime you have committed, horrible thing you have said, tragedy you have gone through, or sin you have committed that God will not forgive if you ask.
A lot of people don’t read the Bible, and they have many reasons for not doing so. I would have thought it’s because they simply don’t believe it. Surprisingly, that’s not the most common answer I got. The most common answer was that they don’t read it because they are afraid of what they will discover. They are afraid they aren’t good enough, and think God is just waiting for them to mess up.
If that sounds familiar to you at all, let me give you some reassurance. It’s just the opposite. Some of the places Jesus lived and preached would be modern day Israel, Egypt, Palestine and Lebanon. He spent very little time within the walls of a church, or temple. His days were spent teaching in the company of thieves, adulterers, betrayers, liars, prostitutes, and a whole cocktail of other kinds of sinners. Guess what? He didn’t strike any of them with lightening and hellfire. He forgave them. He showed them love and compassion. He told them to keep from sinning like that again and covered them with God’s redeeming grace.
Even the ones who nailed him to a cross.
Even you and me.
No matter what your embarrassing story is, you can rest assured that you are not the first person who has been on that walk of shame, and you won’t be the last. But if God has forgiven all of those other people, He will forgive you, too.
Give it to Him. Lay it down. Release it.
Whatever it is, give yourself permission to put the shame behind you. It is so liberating! And when you find that peace in Christ that is unattainable by any other means, you will have your own redemption story to tell. When you see someone else struggling with the same vices you once had, I hope you have compassion on them and share with them how you came out better on the other side. Your story can change someone’s life. Perhaps the very people who once cast stones in your direction will drop them to the ground. Maybe the change they see in you will inspire them to be a better version of themselves. It could even replace the cycle of judgement and revenge with that of love and forgiveness. Imagine…
Have a blessed week, friends!
Denae Jones is the author of the devotional/journal “Love, Joy, Peace” and the co-author of devotionals “Everyday Grace for Mothers” and “Everyday Grace for Teens”, available most places books are sold. Soon to be released is her first novel, co-authored with Jennifer Thomas, “But, Even Now”.