Breaking away from Guilt

How blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven,
Whose sin is covered! 2 How blessed is the man to whom the LORD does not impute iniquity,
And in whose spirit there is no deceit!
     3 When I kept silent about my sin, my body wasted away
Through my groaning all day long. 4 For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me;
My vitality was drained away as with the fever heat of summer. Selah . 5 I acknowledged my sin to You,
And my iniquity I did not hide;
I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the LORD";
And You forgave the guilt of my sin. Selah. 6 Therefore, let everyone who is godly pray to You in a time when You may be found;
Surely in a flood of great waters they will not reach him. 7 You are my hiding place; You preserve me from trouble;
You surround me with songs of deliverance. Selah.
     8 I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you should go;
I will counsel you with My eye upon you. 9 Do not be as the horse or as the mule which have no understanding,
Whose trappings include bit and bridle to hold them in check,
Otherwise they will not come near to you.

Psalms 32:1-9 (NASB95)

Guilt is not necessarily a bad thing.  Like pain is serves us a warning system that something is wrong.  But if we hold on to it, Satan can use it to hinder us and render us useless in Kingdom work.  Psalm 32 gives us some help in breaking away from guilt.

First, we must understand and accept forgiveness.  (Vs. 1-2)  God forgives.  That is really great news!  So don't roll around in your guilt but enjoy and appreciate God's forgiveness.

Second, we must understand and accept conviction.  (Vs. 3-6)  Conviction can be painful and none of us really like it.  But accept it because it is evidence of God's great love for us.  He loves us so much He will not leave us in our sin but brings conviction to draw us back to Him.

Finally understand and accept your security.  (Vs. 7-9)  God is our refuge.  He loves us so much.  We beat ourselves up about our sin.  We should take our sin seriously.  There is an appropriate time for grieving over our sin.  But there is also a time to acknowledge the sin and move on, knowing that God still loves you and is with you and wants to use you.  It is good to rest secure in the love of our savior.

Don't camp in the valley of guilt.  Go through it and come out into the pasture of His love, mercy and grace.