Shackles of Shame Dissolve by Grace

"You are tripping me out, woman," he said.

I glanced at his reflection in the rear-view mirror.  I was quiet, then turned to face him.  "What do you mean?" I asked. 

"I thought you'd be cussing me out."

I was confused.  "Why?" I asked. 

"Because of what I did to you 30-something years ago."

My heart lurched in my chest, he needed the truth.  

"If I had to stand under the weight of all the sins I had ever committed, of every bad thought I ever had or every bad word I had ever said about anyone, I couldn't stand.  I couldn't possibly stand under the weight of it all."  These words tumbled out.  "Only by grace can I stand.  Only by the grace of forgiveness, the grace of Jesus can I stand."

I am not a good person, I know that.  I am a forgiven person though.  It is only by the grace that I have received that I am able to extend grace to others.  Grace is not mine to keep, but to live in and to extend.  

It is my prayer that he will be set free from the shame that has kept him shackled for the last 30-something years.  

Know that you can be free from these shackles too.