Jesus himself is the gospel, the fulfillment of the ancient promise of blessing for the undeserving of all nations. His radical message of mercy, forgiveness and love changed the lives of all who believed it--the lame and the lepers, the hungry and the poor, the righteous and the unrighteous. That very same message will change the lives of mentor and mentoree alike, of every person who asks for that transformation.

The term gospel means "good news" and denotes deliverance from bondage and liberation from oppression. After the death and resurrection of Jesus, a new phase of the gospel began with the commissioning of the disciples. At first, the gospel was exclusively a spoken message preached to unbelievers and Christians alike. Later it became available in letters to early converts.

Writing to Christians in Rome, Paul introduced the gospel as the theme of his entire letter. Paul was eager to teach the message as "…the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes..." (Romans 1:16).  The gospel is the power that changes lives--those of the non-Christian and the Christian, your life and your mentoree's life.

In his letter, Paul reminds Titus of the gospel's power to transform lives (3:3-7): "It wasn't so long ago that we ourselves were stupid and stubborn, dupes of sin....But when God, our kind and loving Savior God, stepped in, he saved us from all that. It was all his doing; we had nothing to do with it. He gave us a new bath, and we came out of it new people, washed inside and out by the Holy Spirit. Our Savior Jesus poured out new life so generously. God's gift has restored our relationship with him and given us back our lives" (The Message).

The gospel guarantees that Christ's death was more than ample payment for your failure to obey God's requirement to love Him with all your heart, mind, soul and strength and to love your neighbor as yourself (Mark 12:29-31). All of God's grievances against you have been justly rescinded, and all associated shame and misery have been forever removed because Jesus suffered and was made shameful and miserable for all your sin (Romans 4:8; 8:1).

So not only are you free from obligation to compensate God for your disobedience, but you are also credited with the perfect obedience of Jesus. In other words, God has justified you by removing your sin and by giving you righteousness by virtue of your faith in Jesus. When God looks upon you, He sees nothing less than the beauty and obedience of Christ (Philippians 3:9; I Corinthians 1:30).  Isn't that amazing?       

What amazing grace--that God accepts and approves of you! Grace like this depends upon Christ's sacrifice and obedience, not yours. Faith in Jesus establishes God's favor toward you, and God is so gracious that He has given you the faith too (Ephesians 2:8).   We need only surrender.

As wonderful as it is to be on good terms with God, it's even more breathtaking to be adopted as His uniquely beloved child with all of the family privileges and responsibilities (John 1:12; Romans 8:15-17). Through adoption, God assures you of His affection and makes you an heir of all He has.  

This gospel is the very best of news--forgiveness, righteousness, acceptance and a special place in God's heart. While He has many adopted children, God has no other just like you. Among all of creation, none other has your unique blend of personality and passions, dreams and desires, interests and gifts, perceptions and experiences, and none can or ever will commune with God exactly as you can do.

Uniquely cherished, you are a woman God adores, as is your mentoring partner.  Revel in the specificity of the way that each of you glorifies God uniquely and count on His gospel power to work in you individually and in your relationship.  He is thrilled to hear you calling on Him and on His promised power.