Me & My Emojis

“Shift Your Focus”

Genesis 3:6-13 & 1 John 1:5-10

1.  Introduction:

     a.  One scholar identified ____________ different emotions that Jesus experienced.  

     b.  “Feelings Make Excellent Servants, But Terrible Masters!” Dallas Willard

     c.  We cannot be ____________ healthy if we are not also ____________ healthy.

“Emotional health and spiritual maturity are inseparable. It is not possible to be spiritually mature while remaining emotionally immature.” Peter Scazzero

2.  Me & My Emojis: Guilt & Shame

     a.  Just like us…

“So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food and that it was a delight to the eyes and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate.”

          i.  Adam and Eve were ____________ to the things they shouldn’t do.

“Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked…”  

          ii.  Adam and Eve instantly felt ____________ when they gave into temptation.

“…and they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves.”

          iii.  Adam and Eve tried to ____________ up what they had done.

“They heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden at the time of the evening breeze, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. But the Lord God called to the man and said to him, “Where are you?” He said, “I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself.”  

          iv.  Adam and Eve thought they could ____________ from God.

He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?” The man said, “The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit from the tree, and I ate.” Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this that you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent tricked me, and I ate.” Genesis 3:6-13

          v.  Adam and Eve shifted the ____________ to others for what they had done.

     b.  ____________ can become shame when it hides in us.

          i.  Their feelings of guilt didn’t lead them to ____________ and reconciliation.

          ii.  Instead, their guilt led them to ____________.

               > Shame says we’ll no longer be ____________ if exposed.

               > Shame says this is so bad that we cannot be ____________.  

               > Shame turns our focus ____________.

“Guilt is something I feel because I have done something bad. Shame is something I feel because I am bad.” Curt Thompson, a Christian Psychiatrist, The Soul of Shame

          iii.  God says, “You are my dearly loved child, and you bring me great joy.”

               > I am not what I’ve done, I am who ____________ says I am.

               > It is shame that often ____________ us away from God.

               > Shame grows in the ____________ —hidden, unaddressed, ignored, and pushed down.

“A guilty conscience is a warning signal that God has placed inside you that goes off when you’ve done wrong. The worst step you can take, is to eliminate the guilty feelings without eliminating the cause. That would be like using a painkiller for a bleeding wound without stitching the wound.”   Life Application Bible (Genesis 3:7)

“Shame is not just a consequence of something our first parents did in the Garden of Eden. It is the emotional weapon that evil will use to corrupt our relationships with God and each other…”   Curt Thompson, The Soul of Shame

               > However, the feeling of guilt, when understood and embraced, makes an excellent ____________.  

“For the kind of sorrow God wants us to experience, leads us away from sin and results in salvation. There’s no regret for that kind of sorrow. But worldly sorrow (guilt), which lacks repentance, results in spiritual death (shame).” 2 Corinthians 7:10 NLT

     c.  Guilt can become ____________ when we expose it to the ____________.

          i.  Everything we have done, good and bad, has been ____________ by God.

“For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil.”   Ecclesiastes 12:14

          ii.  We should confess our sin to God for ____________ and cleansing.

“But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.” 1 John 1:9  

               > Is it possible, the forgiveness is for the ____________ and the cleansing is for ____________?

          iii.  We should confess (bring our secrets into the light) to others for ____________.

“So confess your sins to one another and pray for one another so that you may be healed…” James 5:16a

               > “We are only as sick as the secrets we keep.” Alcoholics Anonymous

3.  Conclusion:  

     a.  Four action steps to keep guilt from becoming shame in our lives.

          i.  Embrace ____________

“People who conceal their sins will not prosper, but if they confess and turn from them, they will receive mercy.” Proverbs 28:13

          ii.  Embrace ____________

“To learn, you must love discipline; it is stupid to hate correction.” Proverbs 12:1 NLT

          iii.  Embrace ____________

“A man (woman) who confesses his (her) sins in the presence of a brother (sister) knows that he is no longer alone with himself (herself); he (she) experiences the presence of God in the reality of the other person.” Dietrich Bonhoeffer

               > ____________ is critical to spiritual healing and growth.

          iv.  Embrace ____________

     b.  Shift your focus from yourself to ____________.