We all feel shame at some point, but more often than not it comes from the devil. He wants us to be ashamed of as many things as possible—even when we didn’t commit a sin—because shame makes us feel unworthy and unloved by God.
How many times have you heard someone say something like, “God probably wants nothing to do with me because of all the bad things I’ve done.” If something has the power to keep us away from God like that, you can bet the devil will use it.
Jackie reminds us that God’s love is unconditional. He wants us to be fully alive and free. Choose the release from the captivity of shame that Jesus proclaims in Luke 4:17-21:
“He opened the book and found the place where it was written,
‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives
and recovering of sight to the blind,
to set at liberty those who are oppressed,
to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.’
And he closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant, and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. And he began to say to them, “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing”
For more on shame, see Fr. Mike’s video: Shame Vs. Guilt – Their Meanings and How You Can Heal
