Happy Sabbath friends! Something I’ve always wrestled with throughout my Christian walk is forgiveness – especially when it comes to forgiving myself. I’m my own harshest critic. I can make the simplest mistake, and if I don’t surrender it to God immediately, it lingers…draining me for days. And if it’s a bigger mistake? You can imagine the weight it carries.

But here’s the truth: God never asked us to carry that weight. He doesn’t call us to dwell on our mistakes – especially the ones He’s already forgiven. He calls us to surrender them, to lay them at His feet, and let Him take care of the rest.

“Come now, let us settle the matter,” says the Lord.
“Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow;
though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.”
— Isaiah 1:18 (NIV)

“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”
— 1 John 1:9 (NIV)

When we choose to confess and surrender our sins to the Lord, He transforms us. He renews us. The moment we place our faults in His hands, He begins His healing work. Jesus died so that guilt and shame wouldn’t rule us – so why do we still let them linger?

One of the most beautiful examples of this in Scripture is David. After his sin with Bathsheba, David was crushed by guilt. He didn’t make excuses. He didn’t deny it. He confessed. He surrendered.
Psalm 51 is his raw, honest prayer of repentance:

“Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your unfailing love…
Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.”
— Psalm 51:1–2, 10 (NIV)

David wasn’t just asking for forgiveness – he was longing for transformation.
He wanted God to not only cleanse him, but change him so deeply that he would never fall into the same sin again. More than anything, he desired closeness with the Lord.

“One thing I ask from the Lord… that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life…”
— Psalm 27:4 (NIV)

“You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek You… Because Your love is better than life, my lips will glorify You.”
— Psalm 63:1,3 (NIV)

David’s story resonates with me, and maybe with you too.
There have been many moments when I’ve struggled to forgive myself – beating myself up for every failure, feeling like I’ve let down not just myself but the Lord. But like David, I’m learning that no matter what my past looks like, God is ready to make me new.

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!”
— 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NIV)

“I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you…”
— Ezekiel 36:26 (NIV)

“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing!”
— Isaiah 43:18–19 (NIV)

So today, I pray over each heart reading this.
If you are carrying shame or guilt from your past – or even your present – I pray that you surrender it all to Jesus. He is ready to forgive, to restore, and to make you new. Thank You, Lord, for Your grace, even when we struggle to give it to ourselves. Help us be gentler with our own hearts. Teach us to give the same grace to ourselves and to others that You so freely give to us.

“He does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities.
As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us.”
— Psalm 103:10,12 (NIV)

It’s time to forgive yourself.
Take a moment today – just you and the Lord – and lay down the burdens that have been consuming your heart. The very moment you surrender…is the moment you are made new in Christ.

Amen.