Hope
A great coach offers hope in this life.
Outside of coaching, I can also offer hope beyond this life.
If you’re considering a professional coach, then you want hope that your future can be better than your past or present. A great coach can give you that hope and help you along your journey to that future you want.
But there’s some hope you won’t get during a coaching session. Why? Because coaching isn’t the solution to every problem. Sometimes therapy or counseling is the right answer. Sometimes you’re looking for consulting or mentoring. You can read more about those distinctions under About Coaching.
And sometimes you’re looking for spiritual hope. The good news is I can help you find spiritual hope!
Just not in the context of a professional coaching session.
The good news is I can help you find spiritual hope!
Boundaries of Professional Coaching
Northway Insights is committed to professional standards of coaching. This does not mean we can’t talk about spiritual things. But it does mean spiritual topics will come up only if you raise them. And if you do, we’ll discuss them from the perspective of your own faith background and not mine. Proselytizing and conversion attempts have no place in a coaching conversation. A professional coach doesn’t give spiritual guidance; that’s written into our coaching agreement.
But I would love to help you find spiritual hope. I want you to have a healthy relationship with God. Later on this page, I’ll share how you can connect with me for help with that outside of a professional coaching session.
Hope to Erase Guilt and Shame
Renowned author and speaker Brené Brown distinguishes the feelings of guilt and shame. Here’s how I remember her distinction:
- Guilt: The feeling that you have done a bad thing.
- Shame: The feeling that you are a bad person.
Some professionals will encourage you to reject both guilt and shame. In their eyes, both feelings are problems to be eliminated. I disagree. Much like pain does in the physical body, guilt and shame both motivate the spiritual part of a person to address genuine problems.
Others will recognize that guilt is a valid motivator and may encourage you to make amends for any actions that may have hurt others. This is a valuable step for reconciling with other people. But sometimes the opportunity for reconciliation has past. Also, some harm is irreversible, making restitution impossible. And even after reconciliation is complete, you may still feel shame over the fact that you did wrong in the first place.
I believe that both guilt and shame reveal the need for spiritual regeneration. And only through that regeneration can one find true spiritual healing and hope.
Spiritual Regeneration
But what is this regeneration that addresses guilt and shame to give spiritual healing and hope?
The concept is simple enough for a child to understand. In fact, Jesus said that one must believe as a child does in order to be regenerated. But being simple doesn’t make it easy, because it depends on confessing, recognizing, and accepting three challenging truths:
- The truth of guilt
- The truth of shame
- The truth of hope
Guilt
Confess the truth of guilt. We feel guilt because we are guilty of sin — against other people and against God. It doesn’t matter whether our infractions seem large or small. Even the tiniest wrong action is enough to make us guilty.
“All we like sheep have gone astray;…”
— Isaiah 53:6a
“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;”
— Romans 3:23
“For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.”
— James 2:10
Shame
Recognize the truth of shame. We feel shame because our sin is shameful, bringing spiritual death. Doing good things can’t outweigh our sin. Shame is healed only by eliminating our past, present, and future sin. And that we can’t do on our own.
“But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.”
— Isaiah 59:2
“For the wages of sin is death;…”
— Romans 6:23a
“… and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.”
— James 1:15b
Hope
Accept the truth of hope. Jesus Christ, the sinless Son of God, came willingly to die on a cross to take your sin as His own. In exchange, He freely offers you His righteousness and eternal life, if you will accept it.
“…and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.”
— Isaiah 53:6c
“…but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
— Romans 6:23b
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
— 1 John 1:9
Need More Help?
The Word of God has so much more to say about this topic of regeneration and spiritual hope. This page is just a quick overview of one of the richest and most profound spiritual truths. You may have questions, want more information, or crave a deeper exploration.
I said earlier that spiritual guidance is not part of a professional coaching arrangement.
But that’s a good thing. Because if you want more information about the spiritual hope I’ve presented here, I’d be thrilled to have a deeper, private conversation with you at no charge and with no obligation or sales pitch.
Want to talk? Just book a spiritual hope appointment by clicking the button below.