Last summer I recognized God working in my heart allowing grace to replace shame. I began to notice how frequently I talked negative toward myself. Sometimes I even caught myself saying negative things out loud in front of my children. When I finally realized I had been shaming myself for years, I was sad that I lacked grace. It sounds funny, but I’d like to say I met grace. And, once I met grace, I slowly started to change.
One way I learned how to experience God’s grace was from Pastor Wendell Smith. He once said something like, when you ask God to forgive you don’t make it a statement; make it a question. For example, don’t say, “God forgive me of _____.” When you say a statement like that you often don’t hear a yes back. Alternatively, when you ask, “God will you forgive me of ________?” You will always hear yes! It is really nice hearing God say yes.