Is There No Shame?

 "When I heard this, I tore my tunic and cloak, pulled hair from my head and beard and sat down appalled. Then everyone who trembled at the words of the God of Israel gathered around me because of this unfaithfulness of the exiles. And I sat there appalled until the evening sacrifice." Ezra 9: 3-4

    When is the last time you have felt shame, either over something you have done or something done by others? Is shame an old-fashioned idea that went out with modesty and propriety? Are there any sins left in our culture of which we feel ashamed?

    Sometimes I ask God in true confusion, "What is man that you should care for him, or be mindful of him?" When I hear of such great evils that arise from the heart of man, I am embarrassed to be numbered among the race. Indeed, how deep that darkness can be, and to realize that, apart from the righteousness imputed to us by Christ, any of us is capable of such things! 

    Just when I thought I'd heard it all, I learned of an evil that goes beyond the sexual trafficking industry, if that were even possible. At our prayer meeting, one member asked that we pray against the buying and selling of children to be used as victims of torture. That this even exists as a booming business makes me want to tear my clothing, pull out my hair and sit down appalled, horrified and in utter disgrace. 

    Though Ezra, much like the prophet Daniel, was not personally guilty of some of the trespasses of Israel, he humbled himself before God and plead for mercy on behalf of his nation. We ought to do the same. What used to bring a blush to tender cheeks has become commonplace. Then, once those sins are justified in our minds, new ones rise up to take their place.

    The Lord said, "If my people, who are called by my Name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land." (2 Chronicles 7:14) 

    Please join me in prayer against the forces of evil in America. It would be a shame if we did not do so.

"Then, at the evening sacrifice, I rose from my self-abasement, with my tunic and cloak torn, and fell on my knees with my hands spread out to the Lord my God and prayed: 'I am too ashamed and disgraced, my God, to lift up my face to you, because our sins are higher than our heads and our guilt has reached to the heavens.'" Ezra 9: 5-6