Beat Your Shame the Jesus WaySample

Heal The Jesus Way

On your road to true healing and freedom, you will have days where the task to forgive and letting go seems too much of a burden.

You might experience triggers and thoughts of anger. You might have nightmares and sleepless nights. It will seem easier to just ignore what happened and move on. The challenge is to reach a destination where you know that you constantly need God’s grace and mercy in your own life.

We need His grace to heal and overcome, and when we overcome, Heaven rejoices.

When we do not give up and continue to live in the light of Christ we declare that our pasts do not determine our future. Our trauma will not keep us captive. We declare that God is good despite the actions of people. We show the world that it is possible to love boldly—The Jesus Way—even to those who deserve this love the least.

In Matthew 18:21-35, Jesus shares a parable about how a servant begs for their master to forgive his debt and the master shows him grace and forgives all his debt. Later, the servant finds someone who owes him money and refuses to give him the same grace, even though the servant’s much larger debt had just been forgiven!

This happens every day to all of us. We want to receive grace but are not willing to show the same grace to others.

So, how can we live from a place of utmost gratitude for the life that we have in Christ even when we were molested or sexually abused as children?

Firstly, begin to accept His forgiveness and grace in your own life. The revelation of His pure love for you will transform your heart. It will transform your whole life. This grace will give you new lenses to see the world through the eyes of Jesus. Having new “glasses” will never dismiss what happened to you. Your new glasses are there to help you heal.

It is difficult to stay the same when you experience God’s grace in your life. It does not mean that what happened to you does not carry any weight. It only means that the weight will shift from your shoulders to the arms of Jesus. He will deal with those who abused you.

Romans 12:19 reads: “Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord”.

Healing gives back power to the abused child. True forgiveness produces true healing. And grace always supersedes forgiveness. You cannot forgive without making grace part of your life.

Secondly, Matthew 7:7 says, "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you." He waits for you to ask. Jesus always treats our past with grace. He will carry all your weight, all your shame, and all your hurt.

When you need grace, ask. When you need mercy, ask. When you need to forgive, again… ask.

Reflection:

The Holy Spirit has been given to us to overcome the darkness of this world, including all the pain that you had to endure as a child. The thief might have stolen plenty, but we have the power, through Christ, to recover, heal, and flourish.

Do you need the power of the Holy Spirit? Are you struggling to forgive on your own?

Prayer for today:

Lord, thank you for your Holy Spirit. Help me to stay humble and ask for help when I need it. Help me to live out the grace that you have given me.

May my life be a testimony of your goodness, power, and forgiveness.

Lord, help me to walk in true forgiveness, every day.

Amen.