Shame Has No Place in 2020
Sep 18, 2020By Haley Osborn
2020 has not been our friend. Between a global pandemic, an economic crisis, racial tension, and a political climate that rivals the Civil War, our world oftentimes looks bleak and scary. That doesn’t even begin to take into account the social implications of not getting to socialize with friends and families, wearing masks in public places, and churches suspending corporate worship. Prior to COVID-19, we were living in an increasingly isolated world. Scholars believe that the advent of social media and virtual reality drove us further from human connection into the arms of depression and anxiety. And the church is not immune. We are worshipping in our living rooms and experiencing the full weight of sin as our community crumbles around us.
For me, this season has been one of silent suffering and the excavation of deeply rooted sins that I buried into the inner recesses of my soul. But, sin revealed in isolation creates two responses: shame or freedom. These last few months, mentors and mentees in my life have fallen silent. Between the Zoom exhaustion and the fatigue of virtual conversations, women who were vital parts of my life and community suddenly vanished. Even outside of COVID, rates of female pornography use, depression, anxiety, and suicide ideation and completion were rising quickly in the Western world. Instead of pursuing unity, we find ourselves drawn into division. We see a story on Instagram or a post on Facebook, and immediately we cast judgment. We label our sisters and call them names. We gossip about them and slander their stories. Yet, as women and as mentors, our role is to be Jesus in the room.
In Luke 7:36-50, we see the story of a woman anointing Jesus’s feet in the house of Simon the Pharisee. This beautiful story outlines a prostitute coming and kneeling before the feet of her King and pouring out scandalous love on Him. But, Simon, a Pharisee and an exactor of the law, condemned her in his heart. He viewed her as unworthy and unclean. Unfortunately, many women in the church are Simon. As women of prayer and women who mentor, our role is not to condemn or judge our sisters, but to walk alongside them and protect them from ridicule and fight the invisible battle of spiritual attack that is being waged against them by the enemy of their souls.
God never intended for us to live as lone islands battling deeply embedded shame in our souls and our minds. He intended for us to come into community and mentorship with fellow believers and to bear each other’s burdens – as Galatians 6:2 reminds us: “Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” Our world and the enemy of our souls longs for believing women to be silenced by shame, but God longs for you to come before Him and to lay at His feet whatever you have to give and to allow Him to cover you with a new covering – a new identity. He longs to turn to you and say, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”
Haley serves on Team MORE and is a Colorado native who loves sunshine, adventuring with friends and reading a good book. She is an avid connoisseur of local coffeeshops and taco restaurants. Haley longs to see women experience God's freedom and find purpose in their lives. Writing and prayer have helped Haley navigate the turbulent waters of life, and she longs to partner with women as they seek the Lord in their daily lives.
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