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Letting Go of Shame: Breaking Free from Guilt and Walking in Grace · Fostering Faith

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  Welcome back to Fostering Faith. We hope that
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  you guys are having an amazing second week of
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  July, and it's warm and it's beautiful out. This
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  is my husband's favorite month. It's his birth
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  month. It's 4th of July. And so we are just so
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  excited for the month of July. And so as we walk
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  into this second week of July, we're going to
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  be talking about letting go of shame and It is
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  a beautiful just sunny day here and it is just
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  you can hear the birds chirping and you can just
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  hear just and just the smells and it's just wonderful.
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  And so we're gonna be talking about letting go
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  of shame. Shame is one of the enemy's oldest
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  weapons. No sin, no temptation, no fear. Just
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  shame. Because shame is what sin leaves behind
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  long after God had forgiven you. Shame is a spiritual
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  glue that keeps people stuck in their past even
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  when God has already moved them into the future.
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  And shame sounds like you're disqualified. You
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  should be better by now. You always struggle
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  with that. You're not worthy. You're too broken.
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  You should hide this. Everyone sees your failure.
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  You'll never outgrow this. Shame isn't loud.
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  It's subtle. It's creeping. It's whispering.
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  It's smothering. It's private. It's personal.
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  But if you're gonna walk in freedom this month,
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  you have to learn to separate the voice of God
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  from the voice of shame. Because they do not
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  sound alike. And so how do you know that? How
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  do you know how to discern the voice of God versus
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  the voice of shame? And I was listening to a
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  sermon and it was about because you've sat with
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  God for such a long time, you know His voice.
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  You know what His love letter says. You know
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  what scripture says. And so it's so important
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  to know and just to sit with Him. And that way
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  you know what He sounds like. if it's your Aunt
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  Esther calling or if it's some spam guy calling
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  from India or whatever. So you know that person
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  that you talk to every day, if they blindfolded
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  you, you would know your husband's voice, you
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  would know your wife's voice, you would know
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  your kid's voice. And even if you're in a crowded
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  place, a mom or a dad, and they hear mom or dad,
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  they turn their head because they know what their
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  kid sounds like. And so we should know what our
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  parents sound like. And so he's our heavenly
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  father. And so if I would yell for Gia, she would
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  know my tone. She would know. And sometimes I
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  can even look at her and she will just know and
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  know what I'm thinking, know if she's in trouble
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  or whatever have you. And so the difference between
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  shame and conviction is because people confuse
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  these all the time. So let's make it black and
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  white. And so conviction is the Holy Spirit.
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  It draws you to God. It offers you hope. It leads
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  to transformation. It says you are loved. Let's
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  fix this together. Lifts your head. Shame is
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  from the enemy. It pushes you away from God.
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  It offers despair. Leads to hiding. Says you're
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  the problem. And it lowers your head. Conviction
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  is surgical and it cuts to heal. Shame is abusive.
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  and it cuts to wound. God convicts the behavior.
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  Shame attacks the identity. God says, that was
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  wrong. Shame says, you are wrong. God says, let's
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  grow. And shame says, you'll never change. God
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  says, come close. And shame says, stay hidden.
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  The distinction changes everything. And shame
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  entered the world in Genesis 3. The people have
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  been hiding and ever since, the moment that Adam
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  and Eve sinned, they hid from the Lord God among
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  the trees. In Genesis 3, 8, shame always produces
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  hiding from God, from community, from calling,
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  from vulnerability, from honesty, from healing.
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  Shame isolates you from the very place God designed
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  to heal. And here's the powerful part. God didn't
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  shame Adam and Eve. He sought them. Where are
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  you in Genesis 3 9? Not because he didn't know,
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  but because they didn't know how lost they were
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  becoming. And God stills asked that question
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  today, not to expose you, but to free you. And
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  the enemy uses shame to paralyze your purpose.
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  Shame says you can't lead. You can't serve. You
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  think that you're going to teach that Bible class?
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  Those kids don't like you. You shouldn't speak.
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  You have no authority. You aren't worthy of ministry.
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  But scripture is full of people God used who
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  carried shameful stories. Moses was a murderer.
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  David was adulterer. Paul persecuted Christians.
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  Rahab was a prostitute. Peter denied Jesus. And
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  the Samaritan woman? had a lot of broken relationships.
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  Shame told them that they were disqualified and
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  God told them that they were chosen. The enemy
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  uses your past to try to bury your purpose, but
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  God uses your past to give purpose to your purpose.
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  And so shame grows in the dark. So God brings
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  it into the light. Shame loses its power the
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  moment that you stop hiding. Bringing shame into
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  the light does not mean broadcasting your story,
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  confessing it on TikTok, confessing it to unsafe
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  people, reliving the trauma publicly. It means
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  being honest with God, honest with yourself,
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  honest with trusted people, releasing secrets,
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  refusing to hide behind perfection. Light exposes
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  chains so God can break them. And so the fourth...
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  So four roots of shame. Sin. Things you did.
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  Sin forgiven but not released will produce shame.
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  Two. Wounds. Things done to you. Many people
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  carry shame of trauma they did not cause. Three.
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  Comparison. Feeling less than. Perfection. Culture
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  fuels shame. Four. Identity lies. False labels.
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  I'm not enough. I'm too much. I'm defective.
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  Jesus died to destroy these lies. And what Jesus
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  actually does with shame? So this part is so
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  important and so freeing. One, He covers it.
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  In Genesis 321, God made garments to cover Adam
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  and Eve. Shame exposed. God covered them. And
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  Jesus is covering you. 2. He carries it. In Isaiah
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  53 -4, surely He carried our sorrows. Our shame
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  is not ours to hold anymore. It's His. Quit carrying
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  it. He cancels it. In Romans 8 -1, there is therefore
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  no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus. Not
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  some. Not occasional. None. He redeems it. God
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  does not waste your story. He turns shame into
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  strength. He turns wounds into wisdom. He turns
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  pain into purpose. Shame is not the end. It's
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  the beginning of redemption. And the practical
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  processes that I think that are letting go of
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  shame, are these all ending? No, but here's some
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  of them. And here is where you shine. Life -giving,
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  life, heart -level guidance. One, name the shame.
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  Write it. Say it. Acknowledge it. Shame thrives
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  in secrecy. And so what it is, write it down.
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  Two. Identify the lie attached to it. What does
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  shame tell you? I'm dirty. I'm unworthy. I'm
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  fearful. No one would love me if they knew. Name
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  the lie. Three. Replace that lie with scripture.
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  Speak. Truth out loud. I am forgiven. I am covered.
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  I am chosen. I am made new. I am righteous in
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  Christ. I am loved. Truth breaks shame's power.
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  And say it with like excitement. I am forgiven.
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  I am covered. I am chosen. I am made new. I am
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  righteous in Christ and I am loved. And there's
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  so many more and we've said them before on the
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  podcast, but I mean, there's just so many out
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  there and just say them and just know that those
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  are true. Surrender the memory and ask God to
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  heal it. The moment, the emotion, the beliefs
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  that you formed, that identity that you've adopted,
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  healing comes from surrendered lives. Five, walk
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  in your new identity. Shame is a prison and identity
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  is the key. Every time shame surfaces, answer
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  it with, that's who I was. That's not who I am.
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  And letting go of shame does not mean that you
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  don't remember it. It means it won't define you
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  anymore. It won't decide for you anymore. It
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  won't silence you. It won't hurt you or haunt
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  you. It won't limit you. And it won't name you.
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  Shame loses its grip when identity takes place.
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  And the enemy hates free people. He fights freedom
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  because free people walk boldly. They obey quickly.
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  They don't hide. They minister with confidence.
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  They don't fall for lies. They worship fully.
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  They forgive easily. And they are spiritually
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  dangerous. You cannot walk in freedom if you're
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  dragging shame. And so we are walking through
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  our workbooks. Our devotions are on our website,
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  fosteringfaithmedia .com. And so make sure that
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  you head over there and to print those out. And
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  so you can walk through this year with purpose
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  and direction. And so what shame are you from
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  your past? Am I still carrying? Is it memories
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  that still sting? Decisions that haunt you? Labels
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  that you believe? Sins long forgiven, but not
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  released? Wounds that you blame yourselves for?
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  Fear of being found out? God reveals shame so
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  he can remove shame. And so write one step that
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  you will take this week to release the shame
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  to God. Tell someone that's safe. Pray over that
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  specific lie. Write a letter of release. Memorize
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  Roman 8 -1. Confess something to God honestly.
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  Stop rehearsing a failure. Replace a false identity
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  with truth and speak God's approval daily Sign
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  them out write them on note cards write them
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  down on sticky notes. I love sticky notes freedom
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  begins with one step and So if this message inspired
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  you share it with a friend write a comment Share
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  the podcast with somebody that needs this and
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  so we would love to pray for you guys and Lord
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  I release shame today I surrender every lie,
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  every moment, every regret, every wound. Cover
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  me, cleanse me, and restore me. Replace my shame
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  with identity. Fear with confidence and hiding
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  from freedom. Thank you that you are our Redeemer.
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  Thank you that you've never given up on us. Thank
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  you that you are our Jehovah Jireh. Thank you
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  for all that you do. In Jesus name I pray. Amen
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  and amen. We hope that this message encouraged
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  you. Stay tuned for next week as we are talking
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  about freedom from fear. Have a great week, guys.
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  We love you. Bye.