| Break Free from Shame's Prison |
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“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy…” (John 10:10a)
Nightmares. Insomnia. Self-hatred. The inability to love or be loved. Lack of trust. Depression. Self-destructive behaviors. Eating disorders. Aggressiveness. Rage. The list of destruction to the inner depths of the soul goes on and on.
Like fallout from a dirty bomb, life experiences can—and will—contaminate nearly every aspect of your life.
At an early age, Satan deceives so many of us. “God can’t love YOU,” he taunted. “You are unlovable. Dirty. So ugly inside.” He penetrates our minds with shame-filled lies.
The good news is God chooses the most improbable—you and me—to rescue, and transform us. His truth can set us free from Satan’s lies.
Shame is one of Satan’s weapons to keep you hiding from God.
Make no mistake: Shame is not the same as guilt. Guilt stems from our own wrong actions. Shame—warranted or unwarranted—is humiliation we are taught. We perpetuate shame by treating ourselves as unworthy of forgiveness.
Shame can be the penetrating tip of a lie shot at us by Satan. The real lie Satan wants us to believe is that we are too guilty to be forgiven and accepted by God. Jesus died to tell us the opposite, but Satan will pierce us so deeply with his lie that we may not be able to comprehend the truth.
Over and over, Satan will whisper, “You’re no good. Don’t even think about talking to God because He won’t give someone like you the time of day.”
We need to remember Satan truly does exist. Scripture reveals his existence as a spirit of evil from Genesis to Revelation. God threw Satan out of heaven because of his wicked ways. His names include: serpent, accuser, dragon, enemy, man of sin, power of darkness, devourer, devil, and tempter. These names clearly describe his dark character. Jesus called Satan “…the father of lies.” Like it or not, Satan is real.
Satan desires to destroy the lives—yours and mine—by sin. He ambushes us with half-truths, deceit, and outright lies. He uses past experiences to plant thoughts that make us feel, hopeless, rejected,defeated and to have doubt. By these, Satan deceives us into believing we are not worthy to seek Jesus. He will not rest until he robs us of our worth, future, and very souls.
“God is love” (1 John 4:8) proclaims the truth of God’s character. He created you to love and be loved by Him.
Here’s something you must know and one of the most important factors I discovered: We cannot hide from God. You may be trying, too. But you cannot escape Him.
From the bottom of our hearts, the deepest cavern of our souls, we all yearn for joy and love. No more bondage to the lies of Satan. No more shame. No more guilt. Freedom from the past: Liberty to be all Christ designed us to be.
This is the freedom Jesus offers. This is the truth that will set you free today.
Tim Carlisle
