Goodbye SHAME – Hello FREEDOMSample

Welcome to Goodbye Shame, Hello Freedom, from Elizabeth Fisher Good

Speaking to the Unspoken in Churches

Things that we keep inside become shades of gray that lead to shame and a destiny derailed, things that we let out are shades of light that lead to freedom and purpose.

If I learned anything from a decade of running safe homes for sex trafficking survivors, on the heels of a decade of leadership in a mega church, it’s this: Everyone has secrets- in the Church and out.

Regardless of zip code or social status, one out of three women and one out of five men hold the secret of sexual abuse. So much of what holds us back and weighs us down begins with a secret. Shame has a way of short-circuiting destiny, and sexual sin committed against us is the fastest way the enemy can derail a lifetime of purpose.

The only way the outcome varies is how we respond. Silence and hidden pain are only one of the pathways, that same pathway of silence leads to addiction, abuse, domestic violence, trafficking, abortion, overall hopelessness, and often Satan’s ultimate goal, suicide. It’s time for the Body of Christ to lead the new narrative, it is time for truth, the release of secrets, and the power of the Church to take its position in this lost world.

What if I told you there was another way, an immediate off-ramp, a private pathway, to release your secrets and normalize the conversation? Jesus wants to meet you there, to walk you into this place of release and freedom. Allowing guilt and shame over the past to define you leads to spiritual crippling. A few steps can launch your new journey.

Reflect:

As you read this do you instantly have a memory that you are used to pushing back down?

Are you playing a role that projects an image on the outside that doesn’t align fully with how you feel on the inside, have you gotten good at impression management?

Do you have a secret?