Jesus Came for People Like Me - Battling Shame, Guilt and Regret

In this powerful episode of The Intentional Grounding Godcast – Letters to Isaiah, Coach Dombrowski breaks down 1 Timothy 1:15 and uncovers the shocking truth behind Paul calling himself the “worst” of sinners. Through deep biblical teaching, emotional storytelling, and real-life application, this episode challenges listeners to stop identifying themselves by their worst mistakes and start embracing the grace of Jesus Christ.

If you’ve ever battled shame, guilt, regret, or the feeling that God could never fully use you because of your past, this episode was made for you. Coach Dombrowski explores the difference between conviction and condemnation, why shame isolates people from healing, and how God specializes in redeeming broken stories for His glory.

Transcript

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Have you ever sat alone with your past and wondered like if God can really still use you? I'm not talking about the church version of you. I'm not talking about the cleaned up version of you or the version that you post online. I'm talking about the real you, the mistakes, the addictions, the rage, the affair, the lies, the moments you still replay in your head at 217 a.m. Because a lot of people believe that Jesus saves people. They just secretly don't believe he saves people like them. And today we're going to talk about why the Apostle Paul called himself the worst of sinners and why that statement might actually become the reason somebody listening today finally stops running from God. Welcome to the Intentional Grounding Godcast Letters to Isaiah. I'm your faith strategist coach Dombrowski, and I'm here to help you live out your walk, not just believe it. You can join me here. You can join me on TikTok Live and YouTube live, 7:30 p.m. Eastern. But today we're stepping into a verse that has rescued people from shame for generations. But before we read it, you need to understand who is writing it. All right, this isn't a perfect man writing from a perfect life. This is a man who used to hunt Christians. This is a man who approved murder. This is a man who once believed he was serving God while destroying the very people of God. And yet somehow God didn't just forgive him, God used him. And that changes everything. All right. Okay, so Paul is older now, he's wiser and broken differently now. And what's powerful is this the older that Paul gets, the more aware he becomes of the grace of God. All right. Real maturity in Christ doesn't make you feel superior. It makes you feel grateful. Because the closer you get to Jesus, the more you realize how much mercy it took to save you. And in this moment, Paul gives one of the most raw, honest statements in all of Scripture. It says, here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance. Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the worst. All right. And then we've got a couple other pieces of scripture I want to bring up. Romans 5:8, but God demonstrates his own love for us in this. While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. And Psalm 103, 12, as far as the East is from the West, so far has He removed our transgressions from us. What correlates to these three verses is that there are people listening right now who believe that their past has disqualified them from their purpose. Right? You love God, but you still carry shame like chains around your ankles. You worship, but secretly you feel unworthy or you pray. But part of you still thinks that God tolerates me, but he could never fully want me. And that's exactly why these verses matter. Paul says, Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. He didn't say Jesus came for people who already had their stuff together. He didn't say Jesus came for people who had polished testimonies or Jesus came for people with clean histories. That's not what he said. He came for sinners. That means salvation was never built around your perfection. It was built around his mercy. And some of us grew up believing that God only loves the cleaned up version of us. So we hide, we fake it, we perform, we wear church masks, we become experts at appearing okay while internally drowning. Jesus never died for the fake version of you. That's who he came for. Right? And then Paul he says something wild. Of whom I am the worst. Now think about this. Paul wrote a huge portion of the New Testament, right? Performed miracles, planted churches, led people to Christ. And here he is, still remembering who he used to be. That's humility. That's not a self-hatred, that's humility. There's a difference. Humility says, I know who I was without Jesus. Self-hatred says, I believe I'm still abandoned by him. And some believers are stuck there. I get it, right? And then you accepted salvation, but never accepted forgiveness. So that's why you still punish yourself emotionally. You're replaying memories that God already forgave. You're reopening wounds God already covered, right? Keep visiting the graves that Jesus already resurrected from you or you from. Now, how do you make it practical? Right? Somebody listening today is carrying a silent guilt. Maybe nobody even knows about it, right? We talk about smiling publicly while privately feeling devastated or canceled. And you know what's dangerous about shame? It isolates people. Like shame makes people hide from the very God who can heal them. Adam and Eve sinned in the garden. What was the first thing they did? They hid. Spiritly, spiritually still exists today. People disappear from churches because of shame. They stop praying. They stop believing because of shame. They matter to Jesus, right? But they stop believing that they matter. And the enemy loves shame because, again, shame keeps you silent. Conviction says, come closer. Shame says run away. That's how you know the difference, right? God corrects to restore, and the enemy condemns to destroy. But some people listening today are not battling a current sin. Maybe you're battling an old identity, still introducing yourself internally by your worst moment. Aye, I'm the divorce, I'm the addict, I'm the failure, I'm the one who messed up. Stop. Like that may be part of your story, but it's not your identity. The cross changed your identity. And somebody needs to hear it today. If God can use Paul after a murder, he can use you after your mistake. If God can transform Peter after denial, he can transform you after failure. If God can redeem David after adultery and brokenness, he can redeem your life too. Because grace is bigger than your history. So here it is. Here's the shift. Stop asking how bad was my sin. Start asking how powerful is my savior. Because if your mistakes are bigger than God's mercy, then Jesus died for nothing. And we know that isn't true. Some people magnify their failures more than they magnify the cross, but the blood of Jesus is still enough. Not partially enough, completely enough. So I get asked, well, what's in it? Like, how do you make that change? For starters, stop rehearsing forgiven things. If God forgave it, stop rebuilding it emotionally every night. Bring that hidden shame into the light. Healing grows in honesty. The enemy survives in secrecy. Okay? And stop comparing your testimony. Somebody else's story doesn't minimize your pain or redemption, right? Be able to accept grace fully. I'm not talking about intellectually. I'm talking emotionally, spiritually, personally, right? And let your past become a ministry. The thing that you survived may be the thing that God uses to rescue somebody else down the road. All right. And if you quit here, you'll spend your whole life believing that God loves everyone else more than you. You'll sit in church while secretly feeling outside the family. Right? You'll worship while you're internally feeling condemned. You're going to carry chains that Jesus already broke. And you know what? Some people never step into purpose because they never believe that they're truly forgiven. And Paul's life, it proves something powerful. God does not call perfect people, He restores broken ones. Can I say something hard this morning? Some of us are addicted to guilt because guilt feels safer than healing. Because if we fully heal, then we have to become vulnerable again. We have to trust again, love again, serve again. And sometimes shame becomes armor. But I will say armor also blocks intimacy. And God never intended you to live emotionally imprisoned by something that Jesus already nailed to the cross. You know what the enemy wants? For you to confuse remembrance with identity. Paul remembered his past, but the difference is he didn't live inside it. Right? There is wisdom in remembering where God brought you from, but there is destruction in building your home there. Some of you are spiritually living in old prisons with unlocked doors. Jesus already opened that cell, but shame convicted you and convinced you to say. And today, God may be saying, walk out. Walk out. You know, one day people may not remember your worst mistake, but they they may remember how God transformed your life. That becomes legacy, not perfection, redemption.

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Right?

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The enemy wanted Paul remembered as a persecutor. Your history remembers him as an apostle. And maybe the thing that's trying to destroy your identity today will eventually become proof of God's mercy in your story. Now, to my grandson Isaiah, man, you're gonna make mistakes one day. Some are gonna be small, some are gonna be painful, and there may be moments where shame tries to convince you that you've ruined everything. But listen to your grandpa, never run from God because of failure. You run towards him. Jesus didn't come for perfect people, he came from for broken people willing to surrender. And if you ever feel disqualified or not worthy, remember Paul, a man once feared by Christians, became one of the greatest voices for Christ the world has ever known. That's what grace can do. So don't let your worst day define your entire life. Let God rewrite your story. I love you, buddy. So recap. Somebody listening today, man, I hope you needed the reminder. Your past may explain you, but it does not own you. All right. Jesus came specifically for sinners. We learned that shame isolates, but grace restores. And Paul's transformation proves nobody is too far gone. Your identity is no longer your worst moment. God still uses broken people. So here's the challenge today. Stop introducing yourself by what Jesus already forgave. Walk differently, pray differently, believe differently. And if this episode spoke to you, share it with somebody who's secretly battling shame right now. Because there are people smiling publicly while privately believing that they are beyond redemption. And maybe this episode becomes a reminder that brings them back to God. Listen, I appreciate you joining me here today. If this live stream met you where you are or spoke to you on a deeper level, I encourage you to share it out with somebody who might need to hear it. You never know who's waiting on a word just like this. Join me on the live stream every day, 7 30 p.m. Eastern on YouTube or TikTok. Until then, Coach Dombrowski out. I'll be praying for you.