“You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied, and praise the name of the LORD your God, Who has dealt wondrously with you; and My people shall never be put to shame.” Joel 2:26

Shame            

I got a pedicure today. When it was about halfway finished, a very elderly woman came in and was shown the chair beside me. She stood by it, uncertain what to do. An employee came to her said, “Go ahead and sit down.” She remained standing. The employee motioned to the chair again, but the women seemed as if she might bolt for the door. They stood eye-to-eye for a moment. I found myself getting a bit tense.

Finally the elderly woman spoke quietly. “My feet are really bad.” After another pause, she said, “I should have come sooner. I don’t know if you can do anything about it. I don’t know if there is any help for me.” The employee just told her to sit in the chair. After several moments, the woman made up her mind to get in the chair. She had given fair warning. The employee helped her take off her shoes and socks, then gently put her feet in the water.

I tried hard not to look at her feet—I really did not want to cause her more anxiety! But eventually I glanced sideways the tiniest bit. A few nails were quite long—she had probably been walking on them as they curled under—and a few were thick and crooked; her feet were dry, cracked, and red, as if they’d had no care in a long time. As she lowered her feet into the water, she sighed. “Oh,” she murmured, “that feels so good.” Her relief was palpable. The worst was behind her. She had come to the one who could help her, and her shame would finally be gone.

It took immense courage for this woman to stop hiding. She had covered that shame for a very long time. She had become accustomed to living with it—or perhaps she just didn’t know where to go for help.

I know people who believe the shame of their sin is too much for God to handle. They feel deeply that they are too dirty, too misshapen, too far gone—that God would not even want to see these things, much less touch them.

God stands ready to forgive, to pour out healing waters, and to create new life. Let’s bring those things we have kept hidden into the light of His piercing, loving gaze.

“Father, we only think we are hiding—You already know and see it all. Relieve us of this terrible burden we carry. Take away our shame. Thank You.”