Shame and Blame

As a little girl, my parents didn't have much time for my sister and I. They had their own issues and pain that consumed them. Our attempts to gain their acceptance only brought their rejection. Shame afflicts the core of your very soul and becomes your identity. Worthless. I can't remember a day in my young life when I didn't feel guilty and shameful. I believed I was born guilty and spent most of my life trying to prove I was worth something. Men show shame differently than women. They tend to bury it and hide from it and hide from anything that exposes their shame. The truth is that there is nothing any of us can do to remove the shame from our lives. We are shameful, but not more shameful than anyone else.

God allows us to feel shame because its a way to bring us to Him. He is the only one that can provide the cleansing and identity we need to overcome our shame and worthlessness. I am only now starting to truly understand that I do not need to listen and believe what others may say about me. It is essential, though, to listen to the truths God tells us about Himself. This is the only thing we need to know. Our shame is removed through the covering that is Christ. We hide in him and discover there is where we are truly found.