Prayer For Guilt And Shame
God of Mercy and Kindness,
Though I am afraid to be seen, I stand before you now. Give me a heart to trust that you receive all who seek mercy and forgiveness. Make my guilt before you plain to me, and teach my heart to trust in your grace which makes all things new. Let me rejoice in your renewal and restoration. Where I carry self-reproach because I have been mistreated, give me the strength to believe in your love. Rid my mind of those voices that tell me lies about who I am. Silence every demeaning word I speak to myself. Open my ears to your tender kindness. Where I hide my regrets in the dark, shine your light so that all of me is open to you. Where I struggle with shame, speak to my soul your word of acceptance. Though I hide, help me know your goodness which pursues me wherever I flee. Reassure me of the unshakable promise of forgiveness. Restore to my heart the joy of your salvation, so I may become a beacon to others, drawing those who are far off to your grace and mercy. In the name of Jesus, the King of mercy, Amen.
Heavenly Father, I give thanks that You created me for a life of loving relationship with You and others. Instead I've been plagued with feelings of shame for a long time, often feeling unworthy, insecure and inferior. Forgive me for running to isolation, addiction, and destructive actions when I felt ashamed rather than calling on You for help.
Thank you that Jesus died on the cross for me, so I could be forgiven, cleansed, healed and made whole. I acknowledge that only You can restore me to new life and I choose to put my trust in You to do that.
Help me to focus my thoughts on truth and not react to my feelings. When I feel like running or isolating, please strengthen me to remain and seek out healthy people in recovery with whom I can be honest about my feelings. I am forever grateful that You care for me. AMEN
Dear Lord,
We have all fallen short of your glory. We all have sinned. We all have gone our own way. Lord, you sent your Son to redeem us even though we were still in our sin. Through Him, we can have freedom from our guilt and shame. Teach us Lord and remind us daily of our freedom and the grace and mercy you have shown us.
In Jesus' name, amen!
Father God, I thank You that You have given Your Son, Jesus Christ, to die on the cross for all my sins, past, present and future. Father, I draw near to You with a sincere heart in confidence, believing I have been cleansed from guilty conscience. My fertility challenges make me to feel as If I am wearing a cloak of shame, guilt, condemnation, but I choose to put on Your royal robe of righteousness. As I place my trust in You, knowing that I am Your child, I praise You; I will never be condemned or put to shame. In Jesus' name.
Gracious Father, it's nearly impossible for me to imagine the day when there was no need for the emotion of shame. In their innocence, our first parents were absolutely free of any need to turn away from your gaze, or that of one another.
There was nothing to fear or cover up; no need to hide, pose, or pretend; nothing to get defensive or feel guilty about; no need to make excuses or blame the other; no attempt to disappear, do penance, medicate, or try any other broken attempt to deal with the disintegrating effects of shame. What a blessed state of affairs, all lost because of sin.
It is only in you, Lord Jesus, that we now find hope to deal with both our guilt and our shame. For in light of the joy set before you by the Father, you endured the agony of the cross for us, scorning its shamethe shame of being made sin for us, that in you we might become the righteousness of God (Heb. 12:2; 2 Cor. 5:21).
Indeed, Jesus, those who trust in you will never be put to shame, for you took our shame and made it yours (1 Pet. 2:6); as a result, we now live in the present delight and eternal favor of God. O, even more blessed state of affairs. How can we ever praise you enough for such love?
Therefore, Jesus, we cry out for freedom todayfreedom in our ongoing struggles with shame, both the shame we feel and the shame we give. Though our guilt has been completely taken care of by your work on the cross, Jesus, we still feel varying degrees of shame, and we act out in a variety of destructive ways.
We vacillate between self-contempt and other-centered contempt; both of these contradict and sabotage the very love by which, and for which, we were saved. Forgive us when, out of fear, anger and pride, we shame othersespecially those closest to us. Indeed, we need the freedom you alone can provide, Jesus. Bring the grace and truth of the gospel to bear in profoundly healing and liberating ways, Lord Jesus.
We praise you that as this day begins, we are fully and eternally accepted in you. The gospel is true, beautiful and powerful. So very Amen we pray, in your merciful and mighty name.
God, these tiny little prayers feel like cheating. Does that even count? Yes, I know they do. Help me combat these feelings of shame by speaking truth, by offering up these small prayers of surrender as I can and trusting they are enough. Give me freedom from the shame I am feeling. Help me fix my thoughts on you, not on my past, my failures or hurts. Give me eyes to see your goodness. Amen.
Father,
I have made You the Lord of my life by giving myself to You and committing to walk with You through my life. Because of the sacrifice of Your Son Jesus, I freely accept the forgiveness He died to give me. I have committed sins that deserve shame, yet I have repented, and I choose to receive the gift that cost Jesus His life: forgiveness and freedom.
I believe and declare that shame shall no longer be a part of my life. Jesus, the author and finisher of my faith, endured the cross, despising the shame so that I too, can reject and despise shame. I reject it now and despise it from this day forward by avoiding every thought of my past sin and simply thanking Jesus for His great love and sacrifice.
I believe and declare that my past sins are inaccessible to me and to Jesus, for He has removed them from me as far as the East is from the West. I could get on an airplane and travel for thousands of years, circling the globe, and never access my sin any longer, for God has placed it out of my reach. I thank You, Lord, for the freedom that gives me today.
I believe and declare that I have nothing to fear. I will not be ashamed or disgraced any longer. I will not dwell on my past sins, but will throw them into the sea of forgetfulness. I will not ruminate on my former reproachful life, but will focus on the Truth that Christ has set me free from shame!
I believe and declare that in place of the shame that has plagued my life to this day, God will give me honor, and not just honor, but double honor, according to His promise!
I renounce the hidden shameful acts I have committed; I have brought them into light through confession to Jesus and to trusted leaders and friends. I am walking now in complete transparency, nothing hidden. I commend myself to anyone's conscience that I am cleansed and made whole.
I believe and declare that there is therefore now no condemnation for me! I reject the thought that I am condemn-able, for Christ has made me acceptable to Himself!
I believe and declare that I am acceptable to God, to others, and to myself!
I take off the clothes and countenance of shame and put on the garments of righteousness and the countenance of joy and purity. No shame shall cover my face any longer. No spirit of shame shall dull my joy or hold me back. Whom the Son sets free is free indeed.
That's me! I'm free indeed!
In Jesus' Name
Amen
Abba Father, I can't seem to let go of my past. The shame I feel about how I've lived my life. The things I've done, and the guilt as a result. Over the years I've held grudges and I suspect those I have wronged also have that hold. I just can't seem to let go and break free of the guilt.