“O magnify the Lord with me,
and let us exalt his name together.
I sought the Lord, and he answered me,
and delivered me from all my fears.
Look to him, and be radiant;
so your faces shall never be ashamed.”
-Psalm 34:3-5 (NRSVCE)
I think that at the last moments of our lives, the one thing we will struggle with is “shame.”
After coming to realize the great love of God for us, and knowing how much Jesus has suffered for us, we will look back at our lives within that lens of holiness and love.
Who would not regret one’s follies and sins?
In the face of Him who is Love, Justice, Wisdom, Beauty and Truth, who can ever stand?
And that is why many of us will feel ashamed.
Ashamed for all of those times we wronged our neighbors. Ashamed for all of the rude and hurtful words we uttered. And ashamed most of all, of not being grateful for the Love of Him who died so He can save us from death.
At this critical time, let us remember that the temptation is to keep looking at ourselves and our many sins. The great temptation is to despair because of our shame!
No, do not remain in shame nor in despair.
For God is also Mercy Himself, isn’t He? And His mercy is greater than all of our greatest sins combined.
And if He is Love Himself, and He loves us so much, what would Love desire for one’s beloved?
No one who has ever truly loved wants one’s beloved to remain in shame. Rather, one wants the other to trust.
Trust in the God who loves you. Believe that He understands all of the troubles you went through.
In your imperfection, find forgiveness. In all of your wounds, find healing in His merciful heart.
Only by turning away from ourselves and looking upon Him can we be cleansed from sin.
Turn to Him! See His gaze of love and accept His mercy.
Look only to Him so your face may also be radiant with holiness and love!
“The greatest wisdom is for us to seek the will and guidance of our deepest and best Friend – Jesus. He guides us to hold tight to Him… whether we are clean or dirty in our own eyes, for His love for us never changes.” – All Shall Be Well (A Modern-Language Version of the Revelation of Julian of Norwich)
“Write this for the benefit of distressed souls: when a soul sees and realizes the gravity of its sins, when the whole abyss of the misery into which it immersed itself is displayed before its eyes, let it not despair, but with trust let it throw itself into the arms of My mercy, as a child into the arms of its beloved mother…Tell them that no soul that has called upon My mercy has been disappointed or brought to shame.” — Jesus to St. Faustina (Divine Mercy In My Soul, 1541)
You may also want to read “When You Can’t Go To Confession, How Do You Obtain God’s Mercy?”
Jocelyn Soriano is the author of Mend My Broken Heart, Defending My Catholic Faith and 366 Days of Compassion. She also writes about faith and writing at Single Catholic Writer.
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In