Every single one of us have made mistakes. The problem is, some of us believe making that mistake makes us a mistake. The enemy of your soul loves the shame game because it eats away at your soul. Shame corrodes the very part of you that believes you are capable of change.
Shame is a destructive force straight from the pits of hell. Someone you love may be battling shame and you simply don’t understand that’s why they’ve pulled away. That’s why they hide. It’s really not you, it’s the story they tell themselves from their place of soul eating shame.
Living in shame means something in your past now threatens to darken your future. It means you’re being held back from your God-given potential because of your past mistakes.
Now, understand, it is not God’s will for you to be held back, he’s not the one doing the punishing. It is not his desire for you to be reliving the mistakes and shortcomings.
It is God’s plan for you to live in absolute freedom and walk in full redemption. It is by his divine direction that every bad thing would be turned around and used for good. Has that bad thing been turned yet, or is it still creating bad feelings within you? Is it still telling bad stories stirring up shame in you head and in your spirit? Is it still poking at you, taunting you with threats of uncovering, revealing and exposing?
You’ve been blackmailed. Blackmailed by the devil. He is the one threatening to reveal this compromising or damaging information about you. He is the one demanding payment for what has already happened, holding you hostage in a past you can’t go back and change now. So your future is sacrificed because you’re busy making payment for the past.
How much longer will you pay for this?
Girl, are you ready to be set free of that? Are you ready to stare down the one who holds these threats against you and declare they are now powerless? It is time!
I remember as a little girl blackmailing my older brother. I heard him cuss on the school bus. That day as we got off the bus I told him of my plans to tattle on him. Because I had incriminating evidence against him, he agreed to make a deal with me. I wouldn’t tell mom and dad about him cussing, in exchange for his obedience to my every demand. I had him cleaning my room, doing my chores, and giving me his toys so that I would hide his secret.
And it worked. It worked for a long time. One day he didn’t comply with my demands and I reminded him of his offense and the ammunition I had against him. He was tired of me ruling him, so he finally said, “go ahead and tell mom and dad.” So, that’s exactly what I did. I marched my happy little bossy butt right in to my parents and I proceeded to tell them about the time my big brother said a cuss word on the buss.
Oh I felt so powerful. I was sure he would most definitely regret not continuing to hide behind my blackmail. Instead, mom and dad scolded me. I was punished for being a brat and he was dismissed from his wrong doing because it no longer mattered. What’s done had been done and he had punished himself enough over it!
Oh girl, don’t you know the devil has been a brat to you. Just how long has he been threatening to reveal your mistakes? How long has he had you cowered down and missing out? For real, missing out on the fullness of life offered to you because of something you can’t go back and change?
So the payment continues as you are blackmailed by the devil. Reminded of your past. Haunted by that decision. Tricked by your shortcoming. Tormented by your failure. You pay with your shame that causes you to hide. You pay with your regret that causes you to settle. You pay with your sacrifice of the abundant goodness available to you here and now. And you end up living a little life when you were created for a BIG Life!