But Now I See [Part 1]

Pastor author and Bible teacher Alan writings my discovered feelings of shame by the grace of God I discovered that the Christian life is not 99% greater than 1% was all my effort to be a good person.

I discovered is Jesus and Jesus Esther Allen right to another message of good view that will help you see your life in a whole new light.

I'm Daniel Britain excited for you to hear the teaching today. In the series limited as presented at renewal the church in North Carolina you're not able to stay with the entire program. I will make sure you know how to get our special resource. Right now you can be yours for your donation this month to Alan Wright Ministries as you listen to today's message go deeper as we send you today's special offer. Contact us at pastoralan.org Pastor Alan.org or call 877-544-4860 that's 877-544-4860. More on this later in the program right now. Let's get started with today's teaching here is Alan Wright. Anyone can change and there is no limit to how much a person can change anyone can change and there's no limit to how much a person can change where you learn that from one of the greatest transformation stories in the history of the world Saul of Tarsus, who we know is the apostle Paul. His conversion story we pick up in acts chapter 9. In our ongoing series on the book of acts unlimited is the name of the series and today we see the unlimited power of the Holy Spirit to change someone's life.

Acts chapter 9 verse one, but Saul still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if you found any, belonging to the way men or women, he might bring them down to Jerusalem now as he went on his way he approached Damascus and son light a bright glorious line just from heaven just flashed around him and falling to the ground he heard a voice saying Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me is he said I'm Jesus whom you are persecuting rise in inner-city, and you will be told what your to do. Men who were traveling with him stood speechless, hearing the voice but seeing no one. Saul rose from the ground, although his eyes were open, he saw nothing. So they lead him by the hand and brought him into Damascus, and for three days. He was without site and neither a nor drank. There was a disciple of Damascus name Ananias and the Lord said to him in a vision and a nicely said here I am the Lord said, rising out of the street called straight, and at the house of Judas look for a man of Tarsus makes all from a holiest prayer and he is seen in a vision, a man name Ananias come in and lay his hands on so that he might regain his sight, but Ananias answered, Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil. He's done dear saints in Jerusalem and here he has authority from the chief priest of mind although calling her name of the Lord said to him, go for he is a chosen instrument of mind to carry my name for the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel. For I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name. So Ananias departed and entered the house and laying his hands on.

He said brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road by which you came, has sent me, so you may regain your site and be filled with the Holy Spirit and immediately something like scales fell from his eyes and he came to site and he rose and was baptized and taking food.

There was strength on talk about the man who had been so inattentive to his wife. He had become a workaholic. He was, not taking care of himself or anyone else.

He was not showing affection to his wife. His family was absent and one day at work just for something happen to his heart and he felt himself to be change man so he left work early that day went by, bought a new suit of clothing put it on went about two dozen roses for his wife came home to surprise her, rang the front doorbell and she opened it up and she saw him she burst into tears you cry. She said is been determined by his dishwasher broke and flooded the kitchen. The kids been completely unruly. I got a back ache and a headache.

And now, to top it off, you come home drunk. Well, a leopard can't change his spots. We say things because like the head of staff and we got a lot of employees and some is over. What would you look for and hire some answer well past performance is the best indicator of future performance ministry and we know we look around as I go. Blind people don't seem to change that option. So you start thinking people really just can't change.

Well, today's story proves that absolutely wrong because you can have a bigger transformation than Saul of Tarsus, who hated Jesus and hated the people God who became one who live Jesus and love people so much that he would give up his life for them so you can read this story without saying if God could change Saul of Tarsus he could change anybody anyone by the power the Holy Spirit can train.

I've seen it and there's no limit to how much someone changes when the scales fall off their spiritual lives, and they see truth is a glorious story and it's empowering to us all because we all have our own story to tell you. I always felt like I don't have a very dramatic testimony. I was kind of a good kid, I was often the teacher's pet try to do it said I was more of a conformist and so I wish I'd had one is dramatic testimony as you like. I was a drug at a good member of Hill's Angels and one day I was on my motorcycle and blinding light came down and in an instant, I was cured drug addiction to three different drugs and then I became a Christian is not last that my story and was more of a goody two shoes, to my knowledge in every been drawn, not been drunk in the Holy Spirit, but I don't know I don't honor her only ribbon drunk and I've only had half a cigarette I was 11 and they get a straight hair and eyes, took a couple puffs on that thing about got sick and so I was the end of me and said that never did. Because really, you know, my dad and because no limit family, sobs didn't drink because of smoke and my mom when I was in fourth grade.

She accepted Christ and then she told me about Jesus and I thought he sounded great and accepted Christ and I just try to live a Christian life from that time on and and high school there was a Christian group on campus young life, and I got into a small group or campaign group got disciple there grew in the Lord. I got to college I had some intellectual struggles.

There's a story there by then I got into a great Bible study and integrate group at at at a college grew in the Lord. I got called to the ministry and you know experience more God and here I am and so there's is there's a story my life. Though my story is dramatic and better my wife she's got the least dramatic testimony reminder. My wife does not remember a time that she does not love Jesus not do know for sure she is born again. I was nobody knows when it happened. I think she might've been to maybe one I don't know you know she just made sure her little spirit of love Jesus from the time she get my wife is so crazy.

This is only person in the history world. This is happened to. But when she was little and other girls and be playacting like, be that doctor or the nurse or I will be such and such.

What she actually when she was little girl pretended employee acted that she was the pastor's wife who does that what kindergartners like going around pretending to be the pastor's wife and she is so naïve when I got married to her rosters are so naïve. She does not only had she never been drunk. She didn't know what things look like you just like I mean I don't how we got we we we got a free trip that she wanted to different stories. Our honeymoon was to new and one night in New Orleans we walked. I took a walk halfway down Bourbon Street. Halfway down Bourbon Street at night is as far as any Christian should ever go and so maybe not even halfway but we want to halfway down Bourbon Street and throw on the bars. There is a man passed out on the sidewalk and houses, like Stefan over immuno and she's like there's something wrong with that man is somehow them. She said you need to do something she she thought I need to do CPR on him or something to call some medical help or send us a note no honey, I said the man is just drunk and passed out. She said you know I said is Bourbon Street. Knees in front of a bar. That's how I know the least dramatic testimony about Evernote as well. I've never always love Jesus from the beginning. They only count one or one of those cool dramatic testimonies but then when I had kids, I realized I do not want them to have a dramatic testimony testimony I want for them is that I came to us just the mark of a Christian that I want to have on every child and youth in this church. Guess what, you don't have to sell your while to know you don't have to have a season of rebellion know you don't have to run away from God in order to come back to you don't have to do all of that.

You don't have to waste your use in riotous living.

You don't have to do foolish things and waste time in your life you can get just get an early start on everybody else while wasting their time is the growing maturity as the testimony and everything in this resort. I don't have a dramatic right will have more teaching from today's important series and ready for a new year. This is the year you start planning and dreaming for a great year ministries has produced a beautiful, inspiring love calendar with each month not only depicts the Montana heart stirring image also includes especially pressing for the mind explains in his new book, the power to grant, which releases February is available from Amazon for preorder now blessing faith vision the left then told them to be fruitful or not isn't the real word for your productivity fuel for 2021 blessing while calendar gives you space to write down all your important appointments and make plans for a wonderful new year. And most importantly, each time you see the full image for the month. Your heart will be strengthened by empowering this year.

Don't just organize your life for the 2021 calendar is our gift to you.

When you make a donation is not right ministries. Contact us today and start your year out right by the power of blessing, six 877-544-4860 877-544-4861 come to our website pastor and got a work today's teaching now.

Can you once again is if you look inside your story, you will find something that has a point of great and deep connection with somebody, so if there is something dramatic in my story and it is though I didn't drink overcast that I had a driven this in me that was rooted. I didn't know it until I was grown in the Lord and have been ministering as a pastor for nine years. I didn't know it. It was something called shame a feeling that I don't quite measure up and I need to perform in order to be acceptable and it is an anxiety producing unfulfilling way to live and I discovered healing for shame by the grace of God I discovered that the Christian life is not 99% grace and then 1% of its all my effort to be a good person. I discovered is Jesus and Jesus alone, and I found out that I was accepted in the beloved and I made a transition by the power of the holy ghost to just become a person who lives not perfectly but lives by grace you see I moved from performance-based living. If I do well in others eyes. I will be accepted. So I'll try hard. I moved from that to try hard because I'm already accepted in Christ and I know I can make a difference in the world. Now, that may not look much different from the outside from the inside. It's everything. And by the grace of God I wrote that story down in a book originally called shame off you call for yourself yourself.

And we start doing conferences which we been doing for 12 years or more.

All around the nation and you know I thought the Lord would use the book to maybe relate to other people like me, you know the straight a student in the conformists and all that but when I realize is he also could use my story to relate to people who outwardly might look very different than me because shame is shame and grace is grace and we all need the same thing years ago.

Some of you might even been here Hilda was here in this church.

Here she is with her grandbabies now. I wish I could take time to give you her whole story. She's written it down in about five pages only tell you. In short, what happened with Hilda by her own admission, she was the most ornery. The meanest inmate in the Coleman County jail. She had been in the prison system in and out most of her adult life. Her story like so many is one which she had been brought up under abuse, alcoholic relatives and she wound up just being full anger. She said in the jail.

The other women were scared of her.

She beat them up without thinking there's a group at church about pastor Bobby Hill in Coleman Alabama that took that book that I wrote in the workbook.

We put together and they took it into the jail and the sheriff liked the results and said you can do as much of this is you want and so they went and were teaching the gospel through this material only healing of shame and they did it for years. Hilda was mad at God and mad at religion and they kept inviting her to join one of the women's groups.

Eventually she came and sat around the back around the outside of the group just sat there mad and eventually she thought these people really are loving like I never seen this, love, and she inched up and got part of the discussion. I think it was after discussion of a chapter called for the want of a mom and dad, that's about how much shame we feel when we haven't had healthy parents and how much we need a mom and a dad.

She said she got away and she just started crying before God cc God I am so tired of being disappointed and so mad and I'm school say this to you if you're real I need you to show me she just had it out with God.

The next morning she said she was in the in the restroom and another inmate was next to her and said Hilda what's different about you now to said what and the lady who normally would've been scared Hilda said your smiling and Hilda said she looked in the mirror and she saw herself smiling and couldn't believe Hilda went on to not only come to Christ and be nurtured by that pastor in that group, but she went through that book and that workbook so many times that she herself became a facilitator of women's groups and the jail and continue to do so for years. She was released for a weekend when I was speaking in Alabama one time the sheriff said she had such good behavior is let her go for the weekend.

She came in a matter later she got parole early because thereby sidewise this woman she she she was working in the sheriff's office.

By that time she was leading people to rise in helping addicts get off drugs and she was leaving same upgrades, so they gave her early parole and she wrote me an email and she said I just want to know I was parole today and she just wrote one other Senate, she said, but God set me free long before I was set for stranger story on the outside was way different than my story, but it was the same story. The move from shame to grace. I wish I could introduce you to Jessica who has a very similar story.

Jessica was on the streets of Kansas City and in the end of the sex industry in Kansas and she was invited into a church and a particular small group in a church in Kansas City they began reaching out all these ladies in this small group that were all these upper-middle-class and and lovely ladies. They just loved Jessica and invited her in and we went to that church and did the shame off you conference and on Friday night.

Jessica came, she got so mad in the middle of that Friday night session that she stormed out and then come back the next day, but she kept going to that little Bible study group and they went through all that book and all the workbook and she sat there just mad but she kept going sometimes to storm out but she come back the next week later I asked her as there will were you mad who you mad at. She said you say why write that book and get all data must often as I was writing a book about the race and somewhere in the middle of that study, there is a section about receiving and giving forgiveness in a story about a time we gave out a rose every woman said it's a rose for a rose and I made a confession on behalf of man when she got to that. Something inside her got mad and then broke all the men that he mistreated her and Jessica accepted Christ went back to that church. Three years later and did a conference and Jessica have begun ministering with a ministry that helps women off the street called Veronica's voice and she had been leading shame off you groups amongst those women and I think she knew the book better than I did. I would had no idea that my story that seems so nondramatic is just nondramatic the way it looks on the outside what God does by his grace in the heart of every believer is miraculous and you're a miracle to write today's teaching, but now I see it's from the greater series. The book of acts titled unlimited and past relatives back with us today. Just a few moments with our parting good news thought stick with this early then ready for a new year and this is the year you start dreaming Fred breaking year ministries has produced a beautiful, inspiring blog calendar with each month not only depicts the Montana heart stirring image also includes especially the blessing for the mind explains in his new book, the power to bless which releases February is available from Amazon for preorder now blessing faith vision the left then told them to be fruitful or not isn't the real word for your productivity fuel for 2021 blessing while calendar gives you space to write down all your important appointments for a wonderful new year.

And most importantly, each time you see your heart will be strengthened empowering this year. Don't just organize your life for the 2021 calendar is our gift to you when you make a donation is not right ministries. Contact us today and start your year out right by the power of blessing, seven 877-544-4860 877-544-4861 come to our website pastor and got to work with Pastor Alan which reported good news thought for today is replace the bookmark here. But now I see if Saul of Tarsus, the greatest persecutor of Christians that the early church knew Saul of Tarsus who aligned everything in his life to be against Jesus if Saul of Tarsus could change to be the apostle Paul Wright preacher of the gospel and writer of much of the New Testament.

If Saul of Tarsus can change any one of your listening today and you wonder if God really could change your life. Think about the apostle Paul who once was breathing murderous threats who once was completely opposed God used him. God can use you. No matter your past no matter what you're struggling with now. Anyone anyone can change by the grace of God, today's good message is a listener supported production.

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