Sabbath Scripture-The Messiah Will Be the Son of God

I will declare the decree: 

the Lord hath said unto me,

Thou art my Son;

 this day have I begotten thee.

Psalm 2: 7

More on the Truth Test

I discovered after yesterday’s post that I had written about the Truth Test before. I just couldn’t find it. But repetition is good.


Like I said yesterday, the Truth Test is especially good for long-term vexation and especially powerful if you write out your feelings and answers. But once you’ve used the Truth Test and learned the questions, it does work for daily vexation to ask yourself the questions in the order they come and ponder the answers. Usually I find myself laughing at myself as I realize that I am out of truth and into illusion. Other times I do get all the way to the last question and then am able to change.

The most important thing about the Truth Test is to use it. I know it sounds like a simple solution to a big problem, but it really works. Try it and then email me and let me know your story.

The Truth Test

I don’t know how I have missed explaining the Truth Test all this time, but a kind reader who had heard me speak about Living in Truth e-mailed me the other day to say she couldn’t find the Truth Test in past posts. The Truth Test is crucial to Living in Truth, but somehow I guess I’ve never talked about it on Good News! So today I’m going to rectify that.

The Truth Test is a powerful Truth Tool that works on daily frustrations but is extra powerful in healing deep seated pain such as what comes from abuse and traumatic experiences. It works best if you actually write out all that you feel (explain all the pain) and then also write the answers to the questions. Just thinking through the answers can be helpful for daily vexation, but the power for healing long existing pain comes from getting the thoughts out of your head and onto paper. If you don’t want anyone to read what you write, burn it after you write it. But WRITE it. I’ll explain more tomorrow, but for today here is the Truth Test.

THE TRUTH TEST

(c) 2011 Sherrie Mills Johnson

I feel _____________________________________________(i.e. sad, angry, jealous, hurt, resentful, offended, fearful, etc.) because __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

1. What is my expectation? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

2. Is this expectation the truth and nothing but the truth in a mortal world? What is the truth? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

3. Is this necessary or unnecessary pain? ______________________________________________________________________________

4. How would I feel if I stopped expecting this? ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

5. What is my heart (conscience, divine spirit, God) telling me to do right now? ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Make Christmas Last All December

It’s December first! 

I love December because for me Christmas isn’t the 25^th, Christmas is the whole month. 

So I celebrate all month long because of  the opportunity it gives me 

to think about the most important event in the history of the world, 

the birth and Atonement of Jesus Christ.

Like last year I am going to be celebrating here on Good News!
by exploring the symbols of Christmas. Starting on Monday December 5^th,
I will talk about a different symbol each day. It will be similar to what I did last year,
but I will be adding a lot so I hope you will take a moment out of your busy day
to come celebrate with me.
 Read. Leave your comments. Enjoy!

And spread the Good News!
Invite your relatives, friends, neighbors, or even strangers to
Celebrate Christmas with us here on Good News!
After all, the very best news is that Jesus Christ was born to save us all. 

So share this link: Good News! and spread the good cheer.

There's a Blessing In This Moment For You

This morning when I went out walking the rising sun had painted the puffy clouds a deep coral. It took my breath away and I stood there for a minute unable to walk on. Besides the brilliant colors the clouds looked like a layer of cotton balls and where they dipped and then rounded the color intensified and muted like the nuances of symphony music.


Since I’ve been endeavoring to Live in Truth one of the many blessings I’ve discovered is that in any given moment God is sending me something wonderful to see or hear or feel or smell or taste or experience. But I’ve spent most of my life so caught up with stressing, worrying, wishing, or fretting that I’ve missed most of it. Living in Truth has taught me to live in the moment—to look around and be aware and most of all to enjoy. Vexing over past and future gave me nothing but pain. Living in the present, like it did this morning, has given me so much joy.

Even when I was going through the battle with Grizelda and not knowing if I would die from cancer or be blind for the rest of my life, I found that by just forgetting about those possibilities and enjoying each moment as it came I could experience joy. If I became blind, then I would be blind. But I realized that by vexing about it before it happened I was already blind. It made more sense to enjoy the present in case I did go blind.

Try it. Stop whatever you are doing right now and look around for the blessing this moment holds. Listen. Look. Feel. Smell. Pay attention to the taste in your mouth. Whatever presents itself to you in this moment, savor and enjoy it. Then thank God for that blessing. If you do this pay close attention to the whole rest of your day because many more blessings will follow.

Remembering Grizelda

As the month of December approaches my mind is full of Christmas and the birth of my Savior, but it is also full of the miracle I received three years ago this December—a blessing provided by  that Savior. With the marvel of that miracle filling my heart I went back and read what I had written here on Good News! the day of my brain surgery to extract Grizelda. I’d forgotten that I finished reading the Old Testament the very day of the surgery, and was struck once again with a verse that stood out to me that day. “But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall” (Micah 4:2).

That verse means even more to me now than it did then. He did care for me like a prize calf in a stall. He fed my spirit so that as I walked through the shadows of adversity I was at peace, he protected me, he tended to my every need. But it didn’t end. He continues to do so even though I am so undeserving.

As the anniversary of that event draws near, the memories keep springing to mind and so do all of the wonderful things I learned from the traumatic experience. I am so grateful.

The Best Part of Christmas

The last few years I’ve been an absolute Scrooge when it comes to decorating for Christmas. I haven’t even wanted to put up a tree and when I finally did it it was with great reluctance. It wasn't fun at all--it was torture. But this year I found myself excited to do it. The difference? My son, his wife and children are temporarily living with us while they buy a new home. That means my almost 4 and almost 2 year-old grandchildren were here to help me decorate. But it wasn’t the help that motivated me. It was knowing they would bring the magic. And they did!


Saturday night we put up the tree and all the other decorations. After we put the limbs on the tree my grandson, Cash, left the room for a few minutes. When he came back, Mr. J had the lights on the tree. When he saw the lights, Cash stopped in the doorway, his eyes opened wide in wonder and a joyous grin stretched across his face. “It’s Christmas!” he said. That one look captured all the magic of Christmas and made all the work worth it.

I realize now that what I’ve been missing the last few years is children. Those of you who still have children and are stressing because they undecorate the tree as fast as you put things back on it, be grateful. I‘ve discovered that’s the best part of Christmas--watching the children enjoy it.