Dealing with guilt

What do you experience when you feel guilt?
Sometimes you feel that something bad is going to happen, or you feel unworthy, dirty, like a failure, thereare lots of feelings when people experience guilt.

There are 3 types of guilt we deal with in life and we need to realise they are different and need to be dealt with differently.

def. Guilt is a sense of wrong doing and emotional conflict that arises when you have 2nd thoughts on something that we have done. we think about somethingthat has happened in the past and we think we have done something wrong. you keep bringing up something old and trashy which God has forgiven you for.you need to let it go.

Read 1 John 1:5 - (walking in light) This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all

Read Eph 1:7 - In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace

Why do we feel guilt?
- Sometimes it is because we are taught wrongly, we are taught to have a sense of wrong guilt. if we are brought up thinkingeverything is wrong then i will grow up having a sense of guilt. whether we are taught within the church or within our family. maybe when we were youngerwe were told we were always wrong, we were no good and unworthy.

- We also may have childhood memories which effect us now. someone when we were young something bad happened and you were blamed for it for no reason, someonethrew blame on you and told you it was your fault. you grew up with that guilt without knowing what you had done wrong. God would never tell you thatyou were wrong or that you are bad.

- Low self esteem. feel like you didnt get the breaks in life, not up to your expectations. you feel inadequate and no matter what you do you never feelthat you have done it correctly.

Any guilty feeling which does not have a biblical origin, is wrong and false guilt. God doesnt lay guilt on his chidren. satan uses false guilt to harrassGods children.

There is biblical guilt though. this stems from an act of sin you have committed with the knowledge you have done something against God, the Holy Spirit convicts you and tells you you shouldnt have done that. He will NEVER tell you that you are bad or unworthy.

So what is the result/consequences of these guilty feelings? (false guilt leaves the same effect on us as true guilt)
- Doubt. one of the first things that happens is doubt. whether God loves us or not, doubt His presence, His promises and provisions. You doubt His answering your prayers.

- Fear. Fear of the judgement of God, or of Gods rejection. fear of loss of health, financial security etc-desire of punishment. you get used to the punishment like when you were a child. you felt better after you were spanked as a child cos you knewy ou deserved it.

- Insecurities. not enough money, friends, approval etc. you may end up with no friends, limited money, afraid of getting sick etc. you are clouded

- Compulsive behaviour. you get busy and stay busy. you are trying to pay God back. you dont realise that you dont need divine approval, you just needto realise that Christ is your saviour and you dont need to bring upon emotional pain upon yourself. there are many women in the ministry because theirpast has brought them to church. you dont need to pay God back, you cant. how can you repay Him for you sin? do not get into ministry trying to pay God backHe already loves you!- inability to experience the goodness/pleasures of life. you push everything good away cos you believe nothing good exists anymore. you dont realise God places good things in your life whether its experiences or people, you believe no one is worhty enough cos YOU are not worthy enough.

- Physically. you end up with illnesses, depression, mental instability.

Now you can go to the doctor and get prescribed pills and medicine etc. but it takes more than that. You need to realise what you have done or not done in your life. You need to deal with it once and for all, You need to confront those people who have taught you you are wrong and unworthy whether its friends or family. You need to deal with it and accept Gods love for you and that you were created as a special unique person in His image. you need to affirm that He looks upon you and loves you, He forgives you even when you have done something wrong BUT you need to understand He forgives those who have done wrong against you also. That is the key, if you have been blamed by your family for things of the past, remember God forgives them and that satan has used them to get to you and to break you, but you are greater than that! You are worth more than that! Understand what God thinks of you. He wants you to fill your life with happiness and people who make you happy and can provide for you so that you may all grow in Him and know Him intimately.

There is no reason to feel guilty IF you understand why certain things happened in your life. Do not blame other people! do not blame yourself! Don't waste time being bitter and angry and upset, focus on WHY things happened and work it out, deal with it and get on with life. for if you dont, you will miss out on good experiences in life which God is giving you which can lift you and take your life to levels you had never believed in before.

Truth is the only thing that liberates us from satanic harrassment. Find the truth within your dark experiences and take it on board and apply it to your life. God doesn't place Godly people in your life to hurt you, He places them in your life to show you what He can do for you and how you can live a Godly happy life with people, that is what He intends for your life. dont reject it! do not go against God.

As we mentioned before, there are 3 types of guilt we deal with in life and we need to realise they are different and need to be dealt with differently.

- Civil guilt. we have violated a civil law eg. speeding.
- Biblical guilt. violating Gods law, divine law. eg. stealing, killing
- False guilt. psychological guilt. based on something which happened in the past or something we feel about ourselves but has no biblical grounds/basis.

If you keep bringing up old trash, feeling guilty over something God has already forgiven you for, it is false guilt. also if you cannot name a single thingas to why you feel guilty, it is false. it is not from God and does not fit who we are as children of God.

How to deal with bibical guilt?
Identify the type of guilt you are experiencing. If its something you have not dealt with, you need to acknowledge it and accept it and believe God will forgive you of that sin if you confess and repent. He is faithful and just and will cleanse us of all unrighteousness and wrong doing.

God will not make you pay for something that His son has already paid for!

How to deal with false guilt?
Whats the source of this guilt? It is most likely something I am not responsible for. However, there IS a source. Ask God and you will be able to trace back to dark times in your life and you will see the truth and be able to accept it no matter if other people cannot accept it.

You affirm these 3 things once you have identified the false guilt from your past:

- I am special. God sent His son for you. God has predestined that He will conform you to the likeness of His son.how much more special can you be?

- I am loved. i am loved by God first of all, you are forgiven by Him AND He has placed people in your life which will love you. do not reject both.

- I am forgiven. if we are faithful and we confess to Him and repent, we are forgiven

But first you need to identify the source of this false guilt. what happens when you identify and realise these 3 things?

You maybe someone who has guilt hovering over them for years, day in day out but when you realise these things, you will reject it. You will reject the satanic harrassment which has clouded your personality and your being for all these years and that cloud will disappear. The blood of Jesus Christ is continuingly cleansing you and making you pure in the eyes of God. You are forgiven for your wrongs BUT you must forgive those who have blamed you for those dark experiences in life, no matter when it was or what happened. You are not responsible for their bitterness or anger or hurt. It is their fault they are angry and bitter towards you cos THEY haven't dealt with those issues. THEY need to realise that God forgives and cleanses people. THEY need to accept Christ and begin living a Godly life and let go of all those unGodly things in their life, THEY need to reject satan and his ways which turns them against you and other people.

All your bad experiences in life stem from one initial bad experience which you haven't dealt with. Look back and see when things went wrong, Have they got better? I will bet my life that your answer is no. You know why? Cos you didn't initially deal with that sin/experience at that very moment! Maybe you didn't have any support or love from friends or family, maybe you were not able to communicate with friends or family and let things out. But with God, it's never too late, look back at that initial experience or issue and deal with it now, today, let someone help you deal with it, do it together and let it go once and for all and allow God's love to rain down on you. do not carry this false guilt with you in life, for if you haven't got anywhere in life till now, you never will until you deal with those unresolved issues in your life, if you dont, they will continue effecting every relationship and decision you make in life.

Does God want this for you? I don't think so. Is this why He created you? I don't think so.

Resolve those issues and start living a life He wants you to live!