shame. idolatry. worship.

"When I worship the idol of looking good, or being bright, or attaining power, I have put my hope in a god that has no power to rescue and redeem. That is not a problem until I need to be saved. Once I need help, the god I created sits silently. In its inactivity, it mocks my cry for help.

Shame arises when we feel deficient, yes. But far more, we feel deficient and ugly when the god we (covertly and at times unconsciously) worship lets us down and reveals the foolishness of our idolatrous trust. Shame in not primarily an experience of feeling bad or deficient as it is the exposure of foolish trust in a god who is not God.

Shame exposes what we worship."

-dan allender.