Welcome back!

I love talking about the goodness of God. My faith grows when I hear others share stories of God working in their lives. One of the sweetest conversations about God’s grace and forgiveness I’ve ever had was inside my local jail.

For a few years, a small group from my church met with the women of cell block 17 each Sunday afternoon for prayer, fellowship and Bible study. We helped women learn to study Scripture. And I learned, too, as stories filled with guilt and shame turned to testimonies of love and grace.

One particular conversation still lingers in my heart. After meeting for several months, one of our new friends said, “I used to think I was hopeless. I thought I would spend my life on the street doing drugs like my sister, my mother, and most of my family. But as I read my Bible, I am learning that God loves me and has different plans for me.”

We rejoiced together as she began to understand that neither her faults nor her family history determined her future. Wendy Pope reminds us all of this same truth on page 155 of Hidden Potential:

“God sees us as worthwhile, full of potential, and longs to advance His great plan for our life.”

In our Bible Study Companion this week (pp. 43-54), Trish Cordell helps us see that God uses us, faults and all, as part of His redemptive plan. Using God’s Word, she reminds us we have exactly what we need, the power of the Holy Spirit, to be victorious over our faults.

BIBLE STUDY COMPANION

Friends — we are FULL of potential, and God has already written us into His plan.

Alicia

Let’s Chat!

Share a time you realized your faults couldn’t stop God’s plans. What changed for you when you understood that?