Can you possibly imagine mothering without any mom guilt or shame? Doesn’t that sound amazing? I don’t know about you but I tend to accept guilt in huge doses throughout my day as a mom. If I lose patience with my kids I grab a little handful of shame and add it to the load I carry. If my kids fight with each other I take on more guilt as I should have been more on top of teaching them to work things out. If I cannot do it all as well as the next mom I feel the guilt rise up and I open my hands and accept it without much of a fight.
Not any more.
I discovered truth that overcomes shame. I’ve learned something that has changed my perspective and lightened my load and I hope that it helps you too.
You see, Jesus paid the price for my shame. All of it. He took it upon himself and declared the work finished. But Satan likes to trick us into thinking that we still need to carry it and we buy into it all of the time.
The Holy Spirit doesn’t guilt us into changing. That’s not the way He works. No, He convicts us of righteousness. In other words He calls us to rise up in victory. He doesn’t beat us up into doing better.
So if you hear thoughts of guilt and shame it’s probably you or the enemy talking. Don’t take on that guilt. Instead ask the Lord what He wants you to take on. I bet it will be empowering and encouraging instead of deflating and discouraging.
The next time you start thinking guilt covered thoughts don’t accept them. Determine that you are not taking on shame. God wants you to give Him all of your shame. When you take your shame, those things that you want to cover and hide, and give them over to your loving Father, He wants to replace that shame with a double portion of honor.
“Instead of your shame you shall have double honor…” Isaiah 61:7a
Can you imagine? Double honor in place of your shame? And isn’t honor what makes you rise up to meet the real challenges of what you should and could do? A life lived guided by the Holy Spirit with wisdom and truth as it’s guide – not guilt and shame.
When I examine all of the guilt and shame I have taken on over the course of my time as a mom I cringe. It was weighty and too much for me to bear. I took every bit of it and laid it at God’s feet. I told Him of all of my insecurities and shame and asked Him to take it all from me. Now when shame-filled thoughts come my way I don’t accept them. I’m not going to go back under the weight of something that I am not required to bear.
What mom guilt can you turn over to a loving God today? Will you let Him take your guilt and shame and give you a double portion of honor in its place? I promise you’ll become a better mom when you do!
If you’ve missed any of the other posts in our 31 day series you can find them all here.
