When
my six-year-old daughter was told by her Sunday School teacher that it was a sin
to be angry, she could have gone through life experiencing guilt each time she
felt this emotion. Guilt can mar one's integrity and self-esteem. False guilt
is created by a flawed belief system, such as believing that all anger is a sin
and that punishment awaits those who feel or express it.
Little children growing up with guilt
and shame seldom feel accepted. When they compare themselves to others, they consistently
fail to measure up and may come to the conclusion that it's hopeless even to try
to succeed. Can you see the relationship between false guilt and the damage it
can do to one's integrity and self-esteem?
Yet there
is hope. God sent his son Jesus to redeem you, to make you right with himself
and others. Choose to believe God has the power to cleanse and heal you from
whatever has wounded you. Guilt can be unrelenting, but the power of Christ
Jesus in you breaks that hold and gives you freedom and peace. This is God's
gift to you.
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