Our guilt may be the result of a moment or a season in life. You failed as a parent. You blew it in your career. You squandered your youth or your money.
The result? Guilt.
A harsh consequence of the guilt? Anxiety.
Surprised? Lists of anxiety-triggers typically include busy schedules, unrealistic demands, or heavy traffic. But we must go deeper. Behind the frantic expressions on the faces of humanity is unresolved regret.
Indeed, humanity’s first occasion of anxiety can be attributed to guilt.
“That evening [Adam and Eve] heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden; and they hid themselves among the trees” (Genesis 3:8 TLB).
What had happened to the first family? Until this point there was no indication they felt any fear or trepidation. They had never hidden from God. Indeed, they had nothing to hide. “The man and his wife were both naked, but they felt no shame” (Genesis 2:25 NLT).
But then came the serpent and the forbidden fruit. The first couple said yes to the serpent’s temptation and no to God. And when they did, their world collapsed like an accordion. They scurried into the bushes and went into hiding, feeling a mélange of shame and dread. They did what anxious people do; they engaged in a flurry of cover-ups.
Can you relate? The only antidote to guilt is the power of God’s grace. I could take you to the city, to the church within the city, to the section of seats within the church auditorium. I might be able to find the very seat in which I was sitting when this grace found me. I was a twenty-year-old college sophomore. For four years I had lived with the concrete block of guilt, not just from the first night of drunkenness but also a hundred more like it. The guilt had made a mess of my life, and I was headed toward a lifetime of misery. But then I heard a preacher do for me what I’m attempting to do for you: describe the divine grace that is greater than sin. When at the end of the message he asked if anyone would like to come forward and receive this grace, iron chains could not have held me back. Truth be told, chains had held me back. But mercy snapped the chains of guilt and set me free. I know this truth firsthand: guilt frenzies the soul; grace calms it.
I KNOW THE TRUTH FIRSTHAND: GUILT FRENZIES THE SOUL; GRACE CALMS IT.
You are a version of Joseph in your generation. You carry something of God within you, something noble and holy, something the world needs—wisdom, kindness, mercy, skill. That is what God is building in you. But remember, “It will take time.” Whether it’s highways or hearts, that’s just how these projects develop.