​So we have all heard about the GOOD NEWS of God! But what does that mean? It literally means "Gospel." The actual Gospel IS the good news! The gospel is what God has done for us - He sent His son, Jesus, to the cross to die for our sins while we are still sinners! That is how much He loves us. But in order to have that relationship with Jesus we must accept Him into our hearts and live a life that is pleasing to Him. 

The world you and I live in today is not the world God created us to live in. Once sin entered the world, everything changed. In Genesis 1-2 the triune God of the universe - God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit - in perfect contentment in the Godhead overflowed in their love and affection for one another onto the canvas of creation and created all that was. God the Father is the Author of creation, God the Son is the active Force of creation and the Holy Spirit is the personal Presence of God that brings life to where there is no life. At that moment, outright rebellion is declared again the King of glory and the cosmos fractured. 

When sin entered the world, relational chaos was introduced. We all became a selfish society whose purpose is to please ourselves - "if it feels good, do it!" These days anything goes, and nothing is considered wrong. And that is not how God created the world to be. No one takes responsibility for their own actions and faults. And when we fall into the trap of sin, we groan in eager longing, along with creation, for things to be restored. 

FOUR PLACES WE RUN TO FIX THINGS:
1. Ourselves - You will never be good enough for God. It doesn't matter how much money you have or how great of a person you are. We are only good enough through CHRIST! 
2. Others - The fractures in the foundation of every relationship is "You will satisfy me and complete me." Don't look to others to complete you. You will always be let down because we were not designed to complete each other, Christ is. 
3. The World - Common grace is God's good gifts to all. (food, sex, toys, homes, etc) When we run to the world outside the boundaries of what God created things to be enjoyed in, we hamstring and hurt ourselves. 
4. Religion - Religion says, "I am going to tilt the scales in my favor by being a good person." There are a lot of "good people" who will be going to hell because they lived their life on being a good person and not a saved person. 

Redemption, Rescue and Reconciliation can only be done through Christ alone. 

Blessings,
Shannon Wright

My 10 year old daughter has been participating in gymnastics for the past month and a half. She has never participated in gymnastics in her life up to this point. She is a bit of a "perfectionist" and feels she has to get it right the first time every time. She wants it done the easy way without having to practice, work, or taking the time to do what it takes to really perfect each movement. 

One night last week she was working on her handstand walkover and she could not get it perfect. She has done this move 100 times now, but for some reason, she just could not get it perfect this time. She became so frustrated and angry she stormed off crying into her bathroom and yelled out, "I quit!!" 

I went in to talk to her and told her a few words of encouragement. I told her how the gymnasts on TV would not be on TV if they quit the first time they could not nail a landing. I told her that life is going to be full of let downs, frustrations and hard work. I also told her about all of the persecution I have been receiving from people I love and respect because of the fact that I follow Jesus and live my life for Him. I have been bad-mouthed, told lies on, lost family and friends due to my faith, and so much more due to my life transformation. I have felt like giving up so many times on my ministry, especially due to the shame and guilt of it my past. I have felt like giving up on my marriage due to the difficulties that we have faced because of my affairs, and just life in general because it gets HARD!!! But I am reminded of the scripture I just studied this morning from Galatians 6:9, "Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up."  

Jesus was persecuted, mocked, betrayed and hated in the bible. So I always remind myself, "Shannon you are in good company." God did not give up me when I was in the pit of sin, living for fleshly desires and doing my own thing in life. He stood by me, watching and waiting for me to get to the lowest point of my life until the day that I looked to the HIGHEST! And because of not giving up on my ministry, my family and my life, He has blessed it abundantly! He has opened doors for me that I never could have done on my own. NEVER GIVE UP! 

Blessings,
Shannon Wright

"I have done the unthinkable and I can't forgive myself. I know that God has forgiven and forgotten, but I can't move on until I forgive myself." I hear this statement from readers all the time. They have a hard time forgiving themselves and moving past those sins that God has already forgotten. The great news that the bible has for us is that Jesus doesn't demand us to forgive ourselves, He has already done the work for us on the cross. This took a long time for me to comprehend too, so you are not alone.

Never does the Bible talk about the idea of “forgiving yourself.” We are told to forgive others when they trespass against us and seek forgiveness. When we ask for God’s forgiveness based upon Christ having already paid for our sins and our having trusted in Him as Savior and Lord, He forgives us. It is as simple as that (1 John 1:9). However, even though we are released from the bondage to sin (as spoken of in Romans chapters 6-8), we can still choose to wallow in it and act as though we are not freed from it. Likewise, with guilty feelings we can accept the fact that we are forgiven in Christ, or we can believe the devil’s lie that we are still guilty and should therefore feel guilty.

The Bible says that when God forgives us, He “remembers our sins no more" (Jeremiah 31:34). This does not mean that the all-knowing God forgets because He forgives us. Rather, He chooses not to bring up our sin to Himself or others. When our former sins come to mind, we can choose to dwell upon them (with the resulting guilty feelings), or we can choose to fill our minds with thoughts of the awesome God who forgave us and thank and praise Him for it (Philippians 4:8). Remembering our sins is only beneficial when it reminds us of the extent of God’s forgiveness and makes it easier for us to forgive others (Matthew 18:21-35).

Sadly, there are people who don’t “forgive themselves,” that is, who don’t move beyond their past, because they really don’t want to forget their former sins, choosing rather to continue getting a vicarious thrill out of reliving them in their minds. This, too, is sin and must be confessed and forsaken. A man who lusts in his heart after a woman is guilty of the sin of adultery (Matthew 5:28). In the same way, each time we mentally relive our sin, we commit the same sin over again. If this is happening in a Christian’s life, the pattern of sin/guilt/sin/guilt can be destructive and never-ending. 

Remembering that our sins are forgiven should make it easier to forgive others their sin (Matthew 7:1-5; 1 Timothy 1:15). Forgiveness should remind us of the great Savior who forgave us, undeserving though we will always be, and draw us closer in loving obedience to Him (Romans 5:10; Psalm 103:2-3,10-14). God will allow our sin to come to mind (Satan may intend it for an evil purpose, but God allows it for a good purpose), but He wants us to accept His forgiveness and rejoice in His grace. So, the next time your former sins come to mind, “change the channel” by choosing to dwell upon His mercies (it might help to make a list of verses that encourage you to praise) and think about how we should loathe sin.

So the next time the enemy reminds you of your past, remind him of his future! 

Blessings,
Shannon Wright