Welcome Encouragement for Today friends! I’m so glad you hopped over after reading my devotion! I’ll explain in just a minute how to enter today’s giveaway. But first I want to share 3 ways we can replace our guilt-induced doubt with grace-infused confidence pulled from Day 12 of my “60-Days to Stop Doubting Yourself Confident Heart Devotional“:
“She never thought anyone would find out about their affair, but now her secret and her sin would be public.
Just as the people gathered in the temple, surrounding Jesus as he sat down to teach them, the teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman who had be caught in the act of adultery. They made her stand before the group and said to Jesus,
“Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?” They were using this question as a trap, in order to have a basis for accusing him.” (John 8:2–6)
They hoped Jesus would condemn her, but the opposite happened.
Instead of lording over her, Jesus lowered Himself before her. Grace knelt down to write on the ground. {tweet this?}
“But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger. When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” Again he stooped down and wrote on the ground. (vv. 6–8)
The Bible doesn’t tell us what Jesus wrote but I’ve always wondered if it was the Ten Commandments, since her accusers said Moses’s law commanded them to stone her. Plus, after writing, Jesus challenged them to examine their own sins and see if any of them were without fault.
When Jesus stooped down to write a second time, perhaps He wrote over the law with redemption. Could it be that He covered the commandments with words like grace, forgiveness, and mercy. Scripture doesn’t say. But we do know that something radical happened. Everyone dropped their stones and walked away.
“At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there. Jesus straightened up and asked her, ‘Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?'”
“No one, sir,” she said.
“Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.” (vv. 9–11)
In my Proverbs 31 Ministries devotion today, I shared about a time when I really blew it and guilt convinced me I was no longer qualified for my calling. But God used my friend and spiritual mentor/mom, MaryAnn Ruff, to show me what the redemption of God’s grace looks like. And ever since that day, Jesus has been teaching me how to replace my guilt-induced doubt with His grace-infused confidence.
3 Ways to Replace Guilt-Induced Doubt with God’s Grace-Infused Confidence
Remember: Remember sin is not who you are; sin is what you do.
Although Jesus knew this woman had sinned, He made sure she and the crowd knew her sin was not who she was. It was what she had done.
Her sin didn’t get the final say. Jesus did.
Refuse: Refuse condemnation, but lean into loving conviction.
They hoped Jesus would condemn the woman, but the opposite happened. Instead of lording over her, Jesus lowered Himself before her.
When you fall into a trap of the Accuser (Rev. 12:10), close your eyes and picture Jesus – the person of Grace – kneeling down before you, looking into your eyes and loving you out of your sin.
Ask Jesus to help you recognize condemnation’s accusing statements like “You’re a failure” or “You can never be counted on.”Refuse to listen to his lies. Instead lean into God’s loving conviction that is specific. Instead of a broad, sweeping you-are-a-loser label, Jesus will point out our sin and show us what to do to right the wrong.
Instead of “You’re such a failure,” God might say: You were critical in the way you talked to _________ . You need to say you’re sorry and ask forgiveness. Then tell _____ something to build them up.
Replace: Replace the guilt of sin with God’s redemptive grace.
In the presence of Jesus, the woman’s accusers walked away. He dismissed them one by one, until He was the only one left standing. He replaced their position of authority. He was the only One left speaking into her life.
Jesus help me replace my guilt-induced doubt with God’s grace-infused confidence. @ReneeSwope {click to TWEET}
God’s grace lures us out of darkness; His kindness leads our hearts to repentance. (Romans 2:4)
He wants to draw us away from destructive behaviors that hinder our relationship with Him and others, so we can live in the freedom of His forgiveness and the security of His love.
Lord, You say there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, and my life is hidden in You. Thank You that because of Your love and grace, my sin never gets the final say about me—You do! In Jesus’ name, Amen.
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Love,Love,Love today’s devotion. especially your admission of the ‘bleeps’. i struggle with taming my tongue when emotions get high. I have been feeling low and unworthy and this was just the reminder that God knows we struggle, understands, and forgives us all if our remorse is sincere. Thank you for letting him talk to us through you. 🙂
Great encouragement for me and for others in my life who are struggling. Need to be constantly reminded of these truths and your devotional will help me to have picture that should help. Thank you!
Guilt is like a leaden coat that drags us down. The devillage piles it on and the way to get it off is to give it all to Jesus and take up His yoke instead.
I will make it easier by the Grace of God and not by my own strength
Absolutely! It is so easy to doubt ourselves when we stay so busy and focused on taking care of our families. We all need a reminder of God’s grace and “reconstruct” instead of “destruct”!
I’m waiting on my divorce from my 3rd marriage. The guilt and shame of this is deep and painful. Thank you for your devotional. I really needed to hear those scriptures this morning.
“When you fall into the trap of condemnation, close your eyes and picture Jesus – the person of Grace – kneeling down before you, looking into your eyes and loving you out of your sin.” Oh my goodness! That brought tears to my eyes! Thank you so much for those beautiful, powerful, and very true words! Just what I needed to read today. I have always loved this story from the Bible, and you brought it to life in this blog post. Thank you and God bless! <3
Sin isn’t who we are, it’s what we do…..we can change our actions but nothing can change who I belong to.
This spoke right to me. I am constantly (CONSTANTLY) struggling with self doubt. I do not feel good enough and secretly wonder how God can continually love me and say “Yes… you are enough” Thanks for sharing!
So many times I have found it difficult to forgive when there has been a wrong that hurt me. Then He reminds me of His unconditional forgiveness, again and again. Thanking Jesus for His forgiveness , which opens our hearts to forgive others.
Such an encouragement to hear that God grace is always enough for us!
Thank you for thoughts today. They were much needed as last week was one of those weeks. Really appreciate the 3 points!
As I read your devotional in my quiet time, my husband started clanging things around in the kitchen and talking to me. Yes, I felt frustration mounting as I read. Then I couldn’t help but laugh as I thought to myself. “I know the kind of frustration Renee must have felt.”
Thank you for your honesty in sharing. Praise God for anointing and appointing you to speak this message to me. I needed to hear God’s voice and message of love and grace instead of Satan’s, which plants that guilt-induced doubt. “Although guilt from the enemy tempts us to give up on ourselves, grace reminds us God never will. Instead, He can take what feels like destruction and use it for reconstruction through our dependence on Him.” My only hope is in the grace and ever available reconstruction God offers when I will admit my dependence on him, and then submit to His authority.
I have felt exactly the way you described in the devotional more times than I can count. I have misbehaved so badly with my mouth and my thoughts that I felt very condemned and worthless and that I might as well give up. What a wonderful reminder that God’s grace steps in and can defeat the guilt that can overwhelm.
A wonderful reminder. Often I am the first to condemn myself, much harsher than others. I also love the grace her church director showed her. I have felt unworthy of being a leader because of my own imperfections.
I have lived over half my life in guilt and condemnation. I am beginning to truly see His abundant grace in every area of my life. It’s a daily struggle but I serve a big God.
Thanks for this timely message. I had a similar experience a few days ago. I said a thoughtless thing and hurt someone’s feelings. I couldn’t sleep until I got up at 2:30 in the morning and sent a note of apology via email. But even after that the next day I kept thinking ‘it is out of the overflow of the heart that the hearts speaks’ so I had to examine my heart and found pride and resentment. It was a hard time but also a good time of repentance and cleansing.
I loved the words you shared today. We all have sin in our lives that we aren’t proud of. It’s a wonderful reminder to know that the sin doesn’t define us. God’s grace gives us a way out. He loves us unconditionally. And, his grace is also a wonderful example of how we should respond when our own loved ones fall into the trap of temptation. I long to be like Christ in all ways, but especially this one. I bet your book is a wonderful read too!
Thank you for the encouragement and reminder that sin is what we do, not who we are. God’s grace is enough.
I mess up daily but thank you God that your grace and mercy are new every morning! Thank you for sharing your ‘real life’ story.
Thank you for showing that God was preparing your lesson in the messy moments! This helped me tons today.
Need a reminder to lean on Gods grace and conviction rather than Satan’s lies and condemnation.
This is why the women of Proverbs 31 make an impact in MY life. I too use a few “Beeps” if I get frustrated and
mad. I call that “Unpacking my adjectives” It is so reassuring to me that I am not the only Christian woman to lose it, not acting like the syrupy sweet Christian that I think everyone else thinks we should be. I hate when I act out of control but confessing my sin to God, my family and receiving their forgiveness is a burden lifted.
The devotion this morning was written for me, after the kind of weekend I had! It definitely touched my soul. Thank you for writing.
Thanks for being so honest in sharing your story. Often the guilt if what I do wrong steals my joy. I would love to be encouraged by this devotional book.
I so identify with the story! I get full of myself easily & just know I can do it all so perfectly & my husband can’t even come close. I hate that in my & I get full of guilt.
Thank you for writing the book – can’t wait to read it!
This devotion spoke to my heart because I’m horrible for letting the guilt of my short comings yet Jesus has better plans and better thoughts and enough grace to cover me.
I too am struggling with guilt from time to time. I have very good days of ‘feeling forgiven’, signs from God that it is okay today and encouraging words from strangers/friends who can see the despair in my eyes. However, I am not ‘out of the woods ‘ yet. So this article was still another reminder of God’s mercy and grace. It touched my heart and soul and I am grateful to you for sharing. Knowing that I/we are not alone is comforting.
I have been struggling a lot lately with guilt over not being good enough – not being a good enough wife, not being a good enough mother. But this devotion reminded me of what I already know but easily forget. God’s grace is enough. God’s grace is perfect so that I don’t have to be.
Needed this today. Thank you for sharing your heart and being real!
I have to say that the verse in which the woman is accused is a wonderful reminder of how those around us are quick to jump to conclusions and are ready to convict us as well as judge us for our mistakes, although she was caught in the act I have often wondered what about the man she was with was he not also guilty? Where were his accusers? Why was he not also brought to be judged? I know these are questions that we may never have an answer to or this is exactly how it was supposed to be for Jesus to show her and them compassion, love, and forgiveness. I love this verse and can take this and change how I allow others to judge me and just do as He did, love them anyway, pray for them anyway, and not be so quick to judge them or myself for my sins. We all sin and fall short daily and instead of condemning each other we should be helping each other by praying for each other, trying to be there with love and compassion and an understanding that as long as we are on this earth we are not nor will we ever be perfect in any sense of the word. Thank you so much for sharing this and your story to remind us that even teachers, leaders and those in the spotlight for God mess up because again we are human and on this earth. Have a blessed day and I pray God continues to bless you and your work for him.
Thank you for your transparency and for the reminder of the truth that Jesus is the King of my heart.
I love the phrase “grace-infused confidence”. I have always struggled with guilt, sometimes even if I’m not in the wrong. God has recently freed me from taking on others’ guilt and reminded me that my confidence relies solely in Him! This was a perfect reminder.
I need to be free of the constant guilt that plagues me about everything I am doing or not doing.
Thank you for sharing God’s grace and love.
Oh thank you so much for this. I feel this was me this weekend. Thank you for reminding me we are all loved and forgiven through grace. And because of that grace and love we too can give/offer to others with the help and love of Jesus. Thank you God for forgiving and loving me! God bless you ~
Thank you for this reminder of God’s grace. May I remember always that just as God does not condemn me when I blow it, that I too must be careful not to put others under condemnation when they blow. May I extend that same gentle grace to others as well.
This post was very timely and written for me. I have gone through a situation where I have had to extend grace and forgiveness to someone who could care less about me. I did it because it was a requirement that God gave me. It was a hard thing to do but I imagine Jesus had a great deal of hard things to do and he didn’t complain. Thank you God for your forgiving grace and mercy in my life.
Guilt is one of the main things we feel that keeps us from truly experiencing true freedom in Christ. Sometimes I feel so unworthy of His grace. I know that I’m a work in progress. I won’t be perfect till I get to heaven.
For years I have identified myself by my sins which has brought on a world wind of self induced guilt. However, God is bringing me into a place of understanding that allows me know that he loves me despite what I do (sin)and accept me for who I am. I am the child of the great I AM! I’m not deserving of grace but He is overwhelming showering me with his loving grace. I am not sin although sin lies with in me I am His child!
I let doubt and guilt consume me! Guilt, doubt, shame, have stolen my joy. It is so hard for me to accept God’s grace! Maybe I haven’t fully accepted Him like I think I have?
Thank you, Renee, for this precious treasure. My heart is lighter today.
Thanks for reminding me of God’s grace. I also need to extend that grace to others and offer forgiveness!
Thanks got reminding me if God’s grace. I also need to extend that grace to others and offer forgiveness!
Doubt creeps in all the time without warning. It’s then that we should stop and remind ourselves who we are because of what Jesus has so graciously done for us though it’s not always easy after we’ve failed.
“There is now therefore no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” -Romans 8:1
This messages truly, hit home to me. I have struggle my whole life with shame, condemnations, doubts, and guilt. Never feeling good enough for anyone or God’s Kingdom. My life has been nothing but a struggle and at 53 years of age I have never felt truly, loved or acceptance. I have never really felt happiness or had cause to believe that I am just ordinary in a fallen world. I really would loved to win this book to help me settle this once and for all, that I do matter and that God loves me for who I am right now.
Always an awesome devotion.
I always thought that when I lost my temper or had not so nice things to say to a family member that I must be the only one who claims to be a Christian, but I sure don’t act like it. What I am realizing is that is a struggle for us all. Yet by gods grace we are forgiven. Thank you Jesus.
Oh my…thank You, Jesus, that you convict, not condemn. Renee, thanks so much for the reminders that we are not our sin – they don’t define us. This is a Truth God has been sinking into the depths of my heart over the past 10 years. Would love to have a copy of the devo!