Episode #49 - Hoping for Grace (Phil 1:20a)

(Phil 1:20a)

If I asked you to name your most embarrassing memory, I'll bet you wouldn't have much difficulty remembering it (although you might not be too keen on telling me about it!) As a matter of fact, I'm pretty sure that all of us have a whole string of deeply buried (maybe even long repressed) memories that are shrouded in embarrassment, humiliation, and shame. That's normal, of course, and just part of being human, I suppose. But have you ever wondered how much our lives are shaped and steered by those memories? How many of our decisions and core values are directly a result of our earnest intention to avoid ever having to experience those mortifying memories ever again? Many of us shield ourselves and build a highly-engineered fortress around our hearts, guarding our words and actions to carefully eliminate any risk of saying or doing anything that will be snickered at or scorned upon. We want to avoid shame and embarrassment at all costs, so we climb in our bunker and guard the door. It is a tragedy, really. Too many of us live shackled to shame.

The Apostle Paul found a different path in life. He had shackles, no doubt. But his shackles were made of metal and they didn't hold him back from being one of the most revolutionary men in all history. Paul had learned the secret of living free from the shackles that bind most of the rest of us. His secret? Cultivating confidence in the coming of God's goodness and grace.

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Music: "Most Holy Place," by Doug Beiden. https://www.beidenmusic.com/music.

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