A Prayer to Forgive Myself

Father, You have forgiven me. Why can't I?

I keep replaying it — what I did, what it cost, who it hurt. The voice in my head reads the charges again every time I start to feel free.

But Lord, You do not read old charges. You dropped them. As far as the east is from the west — that is where You put my sin. Who am I to go dig it back up?

So teach my heart to sign the same pardon You signed. When the accusing voice starts tonight, let Your voice be louder, and kinder, and final.

In Jesus' name, Amen.

When to Pray This

Pray this when the guilt you confessed long ago still follows you around. God's forgiveness is finished work; feeling it can take longer, so pray this as often as the replaying starts. If shame is crushing you daily, a pastor or counselor can help you carry it — that, too, is grace.

A Verse to Hold On To

"As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us." — Psalm 103:12 (KJV)