Shame: God Speaks to You (Session 3: Living for Approval)

The experience of shame is a “consensus that I am unacceptable.” To see shame in life, we need to find words that speak of the experience: words like naked (unpresentable, humiliated), outcast (discarded, disposable, scorned), unclean (repulsive, disgraceful, disgusting), weak (less than, inferior), and poor (worthless, nothing) describe the experience of shame. The opposites of shame include words like: covered, glorious, “my people,” holy, strong, and rich. Welch invites those who experience shame to enter into the story of scripture and to see how it identifies and deals with shame: 1. We have turned away; 2. God pursues; 3. He appears; 4. He makes new boundaries (he touches you, eats with you, and asks for repentance); 5. Jesus chooses shame; 6. He looks down on shame; 7. And everything changes.

(This audio is part 3 of a 5 part regional conference titled Living for Approval: Why We Do It and How to Get Help)