ashamed

"That's the first time I've ever been ashamed of you."

That was kind of good news, bad news stuff. Good news in that she had never been ashamed of me before. Bad news because now she was.

That said, I received my future wife’s comment as a warning of sorts: Don’t dress up as a nerd to win a “Best Nerd” contest ever again. As in never. Suffice to say, I haven’t and I won’t.

That got me wondering: Has she been ashamed of me since that first dreadful blunder? Unfortunately, I haven’t had the guts to ask her. I mean, 30 years is a long time to have gone without a serious stumble or two.  Maybe I don’t want to know.

That also got me wondering about a more serious question: Has God ever been ashamed of me? Has my heavenly Father ever been ashamed of me, His child?

While I can’t say for sure, I have to believe He has. At least, I can’t find anything in Scripture to refute that possibility.

You see, unlike you, I’ve heard all of the horrible things my brain has chosen to think of, dwell on and plot. And, unlike you, I’ve had a front-row seat to all of the pathetic things I’ve said and done.

If I were God would I be ashamed of me at certain points in my life? Yeah, I would.

You have no idea how much that hurts to say that. And I sure don’t like admitting it to you. But it’s true.

Yet, some other things are true: First of all, my heavenly Father still loves me. That never changes.1

And it’s also true that my heavenly Father forgives me when I confess and repent of my shameful mistakes.2

And, maybe most important of all, it’s also true that as long as I have faith my heavenly Father will never let anything get between us. If there’s a more encouraging part of the Bible I challenge you to find it.

“For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”3

Nothing “will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Not even if I sin. Not even if—heaven forbid—my heavenly Father becomes ashamed of me.

God loves nerds. God forgives nerds. And God will make sure nerds get to glory.

And if that’s how He treats nerds, how do you think He’ll treat you?

Do you have faith? Then be encouraged, my friend. God loves you. God forgives you. And God will make sure you get to glory.

“I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes.”4

1  1 John 3:1

2  1 John 1:9

3   Romans 8:38-39

4   Romans 1:16