I receive a weekly e-mail from http://www.gracedagain.com. They usually deliver a nice uplifting and insightfully tidbit to mull over every week. This is one of my favorites:
"Our proper guilt is God's methodology of bringing us to himself. Just as sickness sends us to a physician, guilt sends us to God and keeps us there. In fact, it is that guilt (and here I use the word guilt in it broadest possible understanding of "helplessness", "discomfort", "emptiness", "disunity", "fear", "shame", and "embarrassment") that is the impetus of prayer. It is guilt that builds a fire of love in our hearts. It is guilt that makes us more like Christ. It is guilt that becomes our greatest blessing, because something happens when we come to God for his grace and mercy--something that is so radical and so amazing that it can only be described as death to our old selves. It is the overwhelming desire to please the One who has loved us with such amazing and unconditional love."
Steve Brown, Approaching God
"Our proper guilt is God's methodology of bringing us to himself. Just as sickness sends us to a physician, guilt sends us to God and keeps us there. In fact, it is that guilt (and here I use the word guilt in it broadest possible understanding of "helplessness", "discomfort", "emptiness", "disunity", "fear", "shame", and "embarrassment") that is the impetus of prayer. It is guilt that builds a fire of love in our hearts. It is guilt that makes us more like Christ. It is guilt that becomes our greatest blessing, because something happens when we come to God for his grace and mercy--something that is so radical and so amazing that it can only be described as death to our old selves. It is the overwhelming desire to please the One who has loved us with such amazing and unconditional love."
Steve Brown, Approaching God
posted by Scott at 9:16 AM
6 Comments:
I think this is a glaring misnomer of traditional christianity... that God is so unattractive that we must be forced to him through external pressures.
Personally, I believe that God's character is such that, when we truly understand who He is, we will be inexplicably drawn to Him... not as a matter of self-perservation, but as an attraction of pure joy. Like a moth to the candle, it is built in to "who we are" to be near Him.
But, that's just me.
Wow Bruce, that's insightful. I guess I never really thought about it that way. Since I've been in the church, I've been burdened with so much guilt, that I only considered it from that perspective. But, you are right. Before I was involved in the church, I prayed regularly, thought about God quite a bit, and was even convicted from time to time (but nothing like the lashing we receive in the church). I guess that's what I'm trying to get back to.
Thanks for the insight.
I think guilt can be healthy and can keep us focused. But guilt that is held onto for extended periods of time becomes toxic and tears us apart.
Guilt is such a weird thing but it does exist. I find the most use for guilt in when I wrong someone, tells me not to do so. I usually will work to say 'I'm sorry' and get things right. But being guilted into loving God...I am more on the side of Bruced here, we love him because we realize that love is something we desire (a moth to the flame so to speak). Thing is the flame made the first move towards us.
For me guilt has never been a positive force in my life. It usually just makes me depressed. I believe there is a difference between Godly sorrow over our sins and guilt.
I hear you on the depression aspect Chris. It's difficult to overcome the downward spiral that guilt can (and often does for me) induce.
A difference between Sorrow and Guilt...could you explain that more?
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