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Soon afterward, I went to bed one night with cysticacne all over my face just like I had for the past 13years, but when I woke up the next morning, it wascompletely gone! I was supernaturally delivered thatday, and I’ve been healed of acne ever since.Total DeliveranceMy Wife Is a NewWoman!Praise the Lord, I was healed of acne! But it wouldbe 25 more years before I would be healed of a muchbigger problem than the bumps on my face—theembarrassment and self-pity I had carried with mefor so long.B Y R I C K R E N N E RI had lived with shame for so long that I hadn’t realizedI had actually become comfortable with it. Butwhen I started to be honest with myself, I realized Icraved the attention my condition gained me from thepeople who loved me.I was saying with my mouth, “By the stripes of JesusI’m healed,” but on the inside I was still embracing andnursing my pain. When I admitted this to God—and tomyself—I was finally able to repent and to let it go.Delivered from a Prison of ShameJust being a teenager can be a challenge, but when Iwas 13, I developed a severe case of cystic acne thatcovered my entire face and even went down my neck.These weren’t tiny breakouts; I had huge sores thatbruised. My family spent so much money on doctorsand medicine that I felt like the woman with the issueof blood!The acne on my face wasn’t just ugly; it was also painful.It actually hurt to touch my face. And the pain ofthe acne wasn’t just physical, either. Teenagers can becruel, and kids at school made fun of me and rejectedme because of my face. I was even rejected from beinga part of musical groups in school, even though I wasa talented singer.Unfortunately, rejection seemed to follow me throughmy early adult life when I was turned down for jobsthat I was fully qualified for. I didn’t realize it atB Y D E N I S E R E N N E Rthe time, but I was developing a spirit of shame thatwould grow like a ceiling over my life and keep mefrom reaching the heights God had for me, and itstopped me from giving out of my heart to people andfrom being free and bold with my faith.Hope for HealingOver 13 long years, I lived with disfiguring acne. Butat 25, my miracle finally came. That’s when I grabbedhold of I Peter 2:24 and learned that by the stripes ofJesus Christ, I could be healed.I started confessing that Word over my life. At first,there was no change at all, but the more I confessedthat Scripture, the more it penetrated my heart. Andone day I heard the Holy Spirit say to me, “You cannotfeel sorry for yourself and get healed at the sametime.” I was so convicted in my heart! The self-pityI’d been embracing was revealed that day.The day I was healed from shame was the day I hearda preacher speak about what Jesus had already done forme. Christ took my shame on the Cross and gave meHis glory. What a trade! That day, God gave me a visionof myself—as He saw me—in junior high, highschool, college, and my young adult years. He showedme walking around with the attitude that I was asgood as everyone else, with no cloud of shame overmy life. Then He delivered me completely!FreedomShame had been like a prison, keeping me from otherpeople. It also kept me from doing what I was calledto do and from fully experiencing joy and freedom.Now that I’m free from the bondage of shame, I canminister like I never could before.If you’re dealing with shame, I want to encourage youright now to find your identity in God—not in whatother people think of you or even what you think aboutyourself. Even if you feel like nobody else in the worldcares for you, you can take hold of the Word of Godand realize that the Lord truly loves and accepts you.I proclaim freedom for you, just as freedom has beenproclaimed for me, because God is no respecter ofpersons. Your shame was nailed to the Cross many,many years ago. You, too, can be free and live a glorious,abundant life without shame.When Denise got set free, it waslike I instantly had a new wife.She became a new person, and itwas as miraculous as any miracleI’ve ever seen. She started doingeverything that I had prayed shewould do, including developing newministries. After she was delivered,I would just look at her and think,Who are you? Since this changehappened in her, there are wholeparts of Denise that are comingout that were hidden for years andyears. And I get a kick out of it!If you would like prayer anytime,call the Abundant Life PrayerGroup at 918-495-7777.Jan/Feb/Mar 200920 21