Who Would You Be Without the Shame?

• By candidasullivan
• October 23, 2026
• No Comments

Who would you be without the shame?

We don’t always see the baggage we carry every day. Though it may seem invisible, it drags us down. The weight of carrying decades of shame and pain takes a toll on us. We feel it in our bodies and in the deepest parts of our souls. 

Picking it up every day is a self-inflicted punishment. In some ways, we feel the need to keep carrying it. We make carrying the shame part of who we are. 

But are we carrying things God has already forgiven? Are we living chained to the shame of our past, or walking in the freedom of Christ’s forgiveness?

I was lifting weights in the gym this morning when that truth slammed into me. As I lifted the weights, I thought about how much invisible weight I’ve carried throughout my life. At the gym, I put the weights down and leave them there. But with shame, I’ve spent years picking up burdens God never intended for me to carry. I’ve hurt myself trying to hold on to things that were simply too heavy for me.

I was born into a fallen world with a sinful nature. I struggle with sin, but I no longer have to live as though sin defines who I am in Christ. I can try to hide my sin and feel ashamed for having it, or I can live as if the blood of Jesus has covered me because it has. 

When I continue living beneath the weight of shame, I struggle to experience the freedom Jesus died to give me. But as I learn to receive His love and forgiveness, I begin to walk in that freedom. 

We can take it all to Jesus.  I know how hard it can be to share parts of ourselves that we wish didn’t exist. But we can sit with Him and tell Him everything. Bring the parts of us that hold shame, unforgiveness, fear, resentment, disappointments, and pain. When we bring it to Jesus, He knows what to do with it. 

^{Psalm 103:12 KJV}

¹² As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.

When I read this verse, I think about how often I revisit my past mistakes. I never want to be someone who disappoints others or even myself. If I do, I beat myself up about it. Sometimes I am so incredibly hard on myself, when God is there with grace. 

He doesn’t just bury my transgressions; He removes them. When I think about it, I never remember a time when God brought up one of my previous sins. Satan does, though. He brings them up and tries to hurt me by reminding me. Even though God has forgiven me, I sometimes return to those old mistakes and punish myself for them. I’m learning to extend to myself the grace God has already shown me.

^{Isaiah 43:25 KJV}

²⁵ I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins.

As I read this verse, I imagine a book filled with my sins. Every mistake is written. Every decision I wish I could change. Every hurtful thing I have ever done. Then God takes each page and covers it all, my mistakes and my sins, with Jesus’ blood. He blots out each transgression. And I imagine the pages are filled with heart-shaped images. We can’t erase or blot out our sins, but God can forgive them. 

God’s willingness to forgive stands on something far greater than our ability to get everything right. It rests on who He is: a God of unconditional love and abundant forgiveness. 

^{Micah 7:19 KJV}

¹⁹ He will turn again, he will have compassion upon us; he will subdue our iniquities; and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.

God sees our weaknesses, and He knows our struggles. He understands how sin has affected us. Yet, He meets us with compassion. He casts our sins away and gives us love and transforming grace. 

Sweet friends, let’s allow the shame of forgiven sins to be cast away. Let’s focus on God’s love and let it transform us. Let’s allow it to set us free. 

I want to stop being emotionally imprisoned by something God has already released me from spiritually.

• I cannot change yesterday, but I can receive God’s forgiveness today.
• I cannot undo every mistake, but I can learn from those mistakes.
• I cannot make myself worthy of grace, but I can humbly receive it.
• I cannot overcome every weakness through my own strength, but I can depend on God’s transforming power.

I am God’s daughter. Saved. Chosen. Forgiven. And, oh so very loved. That’s how I want to live, from the glorious love of God. I want to accept every gift of my salvation and learn more about my amazing God.