God’s Love Erases Shame
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio
Do you feel like you’ve done something to cut off God’s love for you?
Are you wondering if you’ve messed up too many times? Backslidden too many times? Made the wrong choice too many times?
Here are a few simple thoughts about the love of God and what it is like for you all the time—even if you feel like you’re not good enough or like you’re too broken.
His love is bigger than those emotions, and He just loves you. There are no conditions you have to meet first. There are no standards of performance. He made you and you are precious to Him. Jesus’ parable of the prodigal son is just as true today as it was when He first told it—your Father will always welcome you home.
God’s love has changed you. You are not the person you used to be.
This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! (2 Cor. 5:17 NLT)
Do you believe that God’s love is powerful enough to make you BETTER? Do you have the faith to agree with 2 Corinthians 5:17 and believe you are a new person now?
Go to a quiet place with your Bible and journal, and ask the Lord to show His heart to you. Read 2 Corinthians 5:17 until it becomes more than just words and you can feel it inside you. Journal anything God reveals to you.
Declarations:
The old me is gone forever. I am not the person I used to be.
I am the beloved child of God. My life is marked by His love.
His love for me is all I know. He has completely undone every bad thing in my past. It does not have power over me.
I am not a used-up, broken person who has no hope.
I am a new person who is filled with love.
One way God’s love can affect your dating life: When you let God’s love flow into your heart, everything changes. The old life—what felt true in the past—is swallowed up by the new life. His presence, love, and mercy can make you completely new. He changes out the heaviness for hope and a new perspective on life. When you feel God’s love and know in your heart that it is real, you will start reaching for Him instead of shame and lies. His love can show you a better way to think about the opposite sex and fill you with confidence. It can wipe out the trauma of past relationships, and it can restore everything inside you that feels broken.
A brief prayer for you: Father, please touch my heart this week so I can really start to know how much You love me. In Jesus’ name, amen.
God’s love is trustworthy even when you feel you are not.
Trust the Lord with all your heart,
and do not rely on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make your paths smooth. (Prov. 3:5–6 GW)
Do you feel like you can trust God’s love? Or do you feel anxious about it—like maybe it will fail you? Or that it isn’t something you can rely on because you haven’t earned it?
Go to a quiet place with your Bible and journal, and ask the Lord to show you His love. Read Proverbs 3:5–6 with an open mind and meditate on it, listening to the Holy Spirit as you read. Journal anything He reveals to you.
Declarations:
I can trust the Lord’s love with all my heart.
I can trust His love more than I trust my ability to be a good person.
I am not afraid to let God love me.
I acknowledge Him in all my ways.
His love is making my path smooth.
One way God’s love can affect your dating life: When you dare to trust God’s love, that is when everything starts to change. In your dating life, it means you are set free to just be yourself and you can love another person really, really well. The Lord knows you like no one else knows you, and He loves you perfectly. This connection to His love changes you, and it allows you to love and experience intimacy in your dating relationship more freely. The more you get to know God’s love for you, the more you will be able to love your partner.
A brief prayer for you: Beloved heavenly Father, please teach me what it means to have an intimate relationship with You. Heal my heart so I can learn to be just myself and live inside Your love. In Jesus’ name, amen.
God’s heart for you today, right now
Graham Cooke writes, “When God looks at you in Christ, He loves you in the same way that He loves Jesus…and He is unchanging in that love. Look for that expectation of His true nature to be present in everything you encounter. Where are you expecting the true nature of God to be present in your life today?”
Look to see His amazing, beautiful love today!
Your heavenly Father loves you more than you realize! For more about His amazing, unending love, check out Becoming the One by Salomé Roat. Click here to learn more. The book is also available in Spanish.