Why Do I Always Feel Guilty? By Mary Whelchel

(Breaking Free From What Weighs You Down)

Page 11 ~ “A life burdened under a load of guilt is not the abundant life that Jesus came to give us. Guilt steals our joy, hinders our productivity, interrupts our peace, harms our relationships, and worst of all, makes us self-focused. When I’m feeling guilty, I’m thinking about myself; and when I think about myself very much, it always leads to dissatisfaction and discontent.”

Page 12 ~ “Guilt is both a fact and a feeling. It is possible to be guilty without feeling guilty. It is possibly to feel guilty without being guilty. And obviously, it is possibly to be guilty and feel guilty. No doubt, we have all experienced these three conditions.

Whelchel, Mary. Why Do I Always Feel Guilty? Harvest House Publishers: Oregon. 2007. ISNB# 0-7369-1890-6

THE SHACK by Wm. Paul Young

Page 72 ~ “His friend unfolded the paper and read silently. “Geez, what kind of loony kook would write you something like this? And who is Papa?” “Well, you know, Papa – Nan’s favorite name for God.” Mack shrugged, not sure what else to say. He took back the note and slid it into his shirt pocket. “Wait – you aren’t thinking this is really from God, are you?” Mack stopped and turned to face him. He had just about finished packing anyway. “Willie, I’m not sure what to think about this. I mean, at first I thought it was just a hoax, and it made me angry and sick to my stomach. Maybe I’m just losing it. I know it sounds crazy, but somehow I feel strangely drawn to find out for sure. I gotta go Willie, or it’ll drive me nuts forever.” “Have you thought of the possibility that this might be the killer? What if he’s luring you back for some reason?” “Of course I’ve thought of that. Part of me won’t be disappointed if it is. I have a score to settle with him,” he said grimly and paused. “But that doesn’t make a lot of sense either. I’m not thinking the killer would sign this note ‘Papa’. You’d have to really know our family to come up with that.” Willie was perplexed. Mack continued, “And no one who knows us that well would ever send a note like this. I’m thinking only God would…maybe.” “But God doesn’t do stuff like that. At least I’ve never heard of him sending someone a note. Not that he couldn’t, but, you know what I mean. And why would he want you to return to the shack, anyway? I can’t think of a worse place…” The silence that hung between them grew awkward.”

Young, Wm. Paul. THE SHACK. Windblown Media, Hachette Book Group: CA. 2007. ISBN# 0-9647292-3-7

The Saving Life of Christ by Major W. Ian Thomas

Page 13 ~ “Christ did not die simply that you might be saved from a bad conscience or even to remove the stain of past failure, but to “clear the decks” for divine action.

Page 20 ~ “How stupid it would be to buy a car with a powerful engine under the hood and then to spend the rest of your days pushing it! Thwarted and exhausted, you would wish to discard it as a useless thing! Yet to some of you who are Christians, this may be God’s word to your heart. When God redeemed you through the precious blood of His dear Son, He placed, in the language of my illustration, a powerful engine under the hood – nothing less than the resurrection life of God the Son, made over to you in the person of God the Holy Spirit. Then stop pushing! Step in and switch on and expose the perplexity – no matter how threatening – to the divine energy that is available.”

Page 55 ~ “Where suggestion becomes desire, desire becomes intent, and the intent becomes an act – the act becomes a memory and that memory is hung like a picture upon the wall of your imagination, in the picture gallery of your mind. When later in your thoughts you wander through the picture gallery, you see the memory on the wall, and this memory itself becomes suggestion, and this suggestion becomes desire, and this desire may become intent, and if this intent becomes an act, you will then have hanging on the wall two memories, and the process can begin all over again with double force!”

Thomas, Maj. W. Ian. The Saving Life of Christ. Zondervan: Grand Rapids, Michigan. 1961. ISBN# 0-310-33262-1