Did you know guilt, shame, and worry are forms of SIN?! Guilt refuses to let us believe we are forgiven. Shame refuses to remove the burden from your shoulders; it continues to look back instead of trusting in God’s cleansing and removing all of our transgressions. Worry says you refuse to let go and trust God to handle your needs, your loved ones, or even your enemies. Any one or combination of all of these three can become an idol in your life. They cause you to erect monuments and thrones in your mind, heart, and soul as they control your thoughts, your health, and your focus.

These weapons of Satan are the reason many of us suffer from the life altering effects of depression, mind disturbing thoughts of suicide, crippling bouts of low self-esteem and other kinds of emotional baggage. We can carry these “bags” all of our lives unless and until we realize and believe that for every problem we have, God has a remedy…God has a prescription for our healing. Jesus is our Balm in Gilead! With our permission, with our “Yes to Your will, Yes to Your way," the Holy Spirit will enter in and give soothing words of comfort and encouragement. He will whisper healing words of love: "you are dearly loved, you are worthy; come unto Me all that labor and I will give you rest.” Let Him in. For only the Holy Spirit is able to reach deep within our hearts to heal our innermost hurts and deep-rooted scars.

II Corinthians 10:4-5 tells us to take captive every thought we have and bring it under the authority of the Lord. Only with the power of the Holy Spirit can we do that. He has given us power and strength to do everything. The Holy Spirit will help us to muffle and silence Satan’s brutal and wretched lies about our past that tell us we are unworthy, unattractive, unwanted, unwelcome, and unable to accomplish our goals and dreams. Once we are set free from the crippling, stifling, debilitating power of sin, God’s Word says, “We are free indeed,” John 8:36.

Jesus will put the past under our feet. He will repair the brokenness of our yesterdays and give us a transformed new life. Our Lord says, in Psalm 103:3, “He forgives our sins everyone.” Further, He says in verse 12 of that same chapter, “As far as the east is from the west has he removed our transgressions from us."

Jesus offers us a New Beginning, giving us a new name—Christian—a new assignment, a new heart, and a new mind. God finds value in each and every one of us. Live in hope, live in faith, live with expectation, live victoriously! John 16:33

“But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be added unto you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.” Matthew 6:33-34