Guilty As Charged?

It's been a little while since my last posting, so I figured that I had better write something new so as not to disappoint those of you who read my blog regularly. I wish I could say that I have some new revelations to share with you, but as of late, I have been rather uninspired. Instead, I will share with you something that I learned some time ago, and was reminded of once again the other night while in discussion with a friend. However, I cannot take credit for these ideas, as I first heard them from somebody whose opinion is apparently worth five cents. So here goes...

The topic of the day is guilt. I am not talking guilt as it may pertain to a death row inmate or even to a hockey player charged with a two minute minor for hooking (my only hockey analogy, I promise!). I am talking about those recurring feelings of guilt that so often plague us long after we have sought out forgiveness for our actions. This was something that used to cause me a lot of anguish, and still rears its ugly head from time to time. It is the feeling that even though we have apologized and sought to make things right, that it just isn't good enough.

One night, I believe it was at our youth service, Chris exposed these feelings for what they really are: lies of the Enemy. You see, as long as we are so caught up in feeling guilty and beating up on ourselves, our focus is not on God, but on ourselves, as is all too often the case. "Feelings" of guilt, and I say feelings because once Christ has forgiven us, our slate is wiped clean, blind us so much so that we fail to see God waiting with outstretched arms to welcome us back; blind to the forgiveness that He so freely gives. I believe that when we dwell on our guilt, it is because we are unable to forgive ourselves, plain and simple. The truth is, how we feel does not change the fact that God has forgiven us, but not without a great sacrifice. The very least we can do is follow His example and forgive ourselves.

I am not talking about the conviction of the Holy Spirit here, as that is vitally important in our lives. The Holy Spirit will convict us when we stumble, but once we seek out forgiveness, does not haunt our minds with feelings of shame and guilt. I believe that this is where the distinction must be made, and once we come to this realization, will allow us to move on in our lives as we fix our eyes upon Jesus.