How God’s Goodness Can Restore You—Part Two

In this episode, Rick Warren continues his series on Psalm 23 by focusing on three things that "destroy your soul"—grudges, guilt, and grief—and how the Good Shepherd restores what is broken. The central argument is that unprocessed pain, whether from others, from our own failures, or from loss, chips away at our inner life, and the only lasting solution is not self-effort or self-punishment but honest confession and trust in God's ability to bring good out of bad.

Why Our Usual Fixes for Guilt Fail

Warren identifies several common but ineffective strategies people use to deal with guilt. The first is rationalization—"telling yourself rational lies" to convince your mind that something your heart knows is wrong is actually acceptable. He observes that society encourages this: "if I shout enough or I affirm it enough or I march for it enough then I'll think it's okay, but inside your heart's gone, it's not okay." The conscience, he argues, is built in by God, and the heart wins every time.

A second failed strategy is compromise: lowering your standard so you no longer feel guilty about falling short. "I'll just lower my standard and then I won't feel guilty anymore," Warren says, adding dryly, "How's that working for you?"