I Stayed: Healing Past Hurt, Betrayal & InfidelitySample

Shame Cannot Live Here

One of the tricks of the enemy is to use what you’ve been through against you. He uses shame to make you feel embarrassed and less than others. I remember being consumed with thoughts of what people would think and say once they found out. When I shared what I’d been through with a close friend, she confirmed what I was afraid of: that people would look at us differently because of the choices we’d made.

God gently reminded me that people have the right to think and feel what they want, just like I have the right to think and feel what I want. What people think and feel about me, my husband, and the decisions that either of us have made is none of my business.

After my husband was obedient to God by telling me the truth, the enemy could no longer use shame against him for the things he’d done. The enemy can no longer use shame to keep me silent and to stop me from moving forward with what God has called me to do. I’m not ashamed of my testimony and I will not be silent. Don’t allow the enemy to muzzle you. The Bible says that they overcame him because of the blood of the Lamb and because of the word of their testimony. We overcome, and other people will overcome, through our testimonies. Shame cannot live here. Give your shame to God.

Read and meditate on today’s scriptures and spend time journaling your thoughts and feelings. Conclude your thoughts with a life statement where you speak life to your situation. For example, "Today I’m feeling broken, but I will not always feel this way."

Keep fighting. You will grow, you will overcome, and you will heal past hurt, betrayal, and infidelity.