Guilty of Guilt

     Guilt is something I'm good at, that is I hang on to it, ruminate on it, get depressed over it, and even focus on it so much that I can't focus on anything else. When guilt becomes the center of my thought life, rather than Christ Jesus, it is sin. It occurred to me, as I read the following by Billy Graham from pg. 144 of his book, Hope for Each Day, maybe I "enjoy(ed) the guilty feeling" too:

Confession and Cleansing

If we confess our sins, 

He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins.

I John 1:9

     Corrie ten Boom tells a story of a little girl who broke one of her mother's demitasse cups. The little girl came to her mother sobbing, "Oh, Mama, I'm so sorry I broke your beautiful cup."

     The mother replied, "I know you're sorry and I forgive you. Now don't cry any more." The mother then swept up the pieces of the broken cup and placed them in the trash can. But the little girl enjoyed the guilty feeling. She went to the trash can, picked out pieces of the cup, brought them to her mother and sobbed, "Mother, I'm so sorry that I broke your pretty cup."

     This time her mother spoke firmly to her, "Take those pieces and put them back in the trash can. Don't be silly enough to take them out again. I told you I forgave you, so don't cry any more…"

     Don't keep holding on to your guilt. If you have confessed your sins to Christ. He has forgiven them and taken them away--forever.

     This story reminds me of the phrase I've seen written on placards which state, "No Fishing," and the the pond in full of forgiven sins. I believe, guilt is good initially, as it convicts me of my poor decisions and humbles me when necessary, but once I've taken this concern to the Lord in sincere regret and repentance, His forgiveness is forever. It's not my place to go digging around in my past trash and continually place it back at the foot of the cross. That type of guilt indicates a lack of faith in the willingness of God to "forgive us our sins."