Shonda Savage Whitworth

Shonda Savage Whitworth is the founder and president of Fortress of Hope Ministries, Inc., offering hope to those whose lives have been impacted by incarceration. Shonda is passionate about seeing those who have incarcerated loved ones to be set free through Jesus our Lord from shame, guilt, and condemnation. And to be filled with the hope and joy we have in Christ Jesus to heal and restore broken lives.

Missing Loved Ones for the Holidays

Holidays, hope

Holidays are a special time for families to get together. However, for some family gatherings they have someone they love missing. Some have lost loved ones who graduated to heaven. Others are separated due to other extenuating circumstances such as illness, finances, work, military service, or addictions. Then there are the families with a loved one incarcerated. When my son was sentenced to prison, I grieved. Hard. The life I imagined our family would have vanished with the incarceration. That…

Pray Like This

Shonda Savage Whitworth

Prayer

One of Jesus’ disciples said, “Lord, teach us to pray.” Even those who walked with Jesus in the flesh asked Him to teach them how to pray. Today, we still want to know if there is an effective way to pray. Jesus answered the disciples request by saying, “Pray like this. . .” (Luke 11:2). Then Jesus prayed a model prayer that we know as “The Lord’s Prayer.” Based on this prayer we have a model to follow (see Matthew…

Holiday Survival Tips for Prison Families

Shonda Savage Whitworth

Holidays, hope

The holidays are difficult when we focus on the desire to have all the family together. However, the reality is that most families are never ever really all together. For many families, someone is always absent. It’s the absence of someone we love during a special time that hurts. Some have loved ones who graduated to heaven leaving a void that cannot be filled. Others are separated due to military duties. Or there are the first responders (ER doctors &…

Prayer for Your Incarcerated Loved One

Shonda Savage Whitworth

Prayer

You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water. I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory. Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands. I will be fully satisfied…

The Most Common Hindrance to Answered Prayer

Shonda Savage Whitworth

Biblical Living, Prayer

How long have you prayed for something you know is God’s will, but still have not received the answer yet? First, how do we know if it is God’s will? God’s word is His will. So, when we pray His Word, His word does what He says it will do. (Isaiah 55:11) However, there may be times in our lives that it seems we pray and decree the Word of God. We ask and ask. After all the Bible says, “Ask,…

Meditate on the Word

Shonda Savage Whitworth

Biblical Living

After the death of Moses, Joshua was commissioned to lead the Israelites into the Promised Land. Three times the Lord instructed Joshua to “be strong and courageous.” (See Joshua 1:6-7, 9) Where does strength and courage come from? We receive our strength and courage from the Lord. But do we just ask for it and it fall upon us? Perhaps God does that for us in certain circumstances. However, I believe the key component to receiving strength and courage is…

God’s Resurrection Power

Shonda Savage Whitworth

hope

The month after the news of my son’s arrest, I attended a Christian writers and speakers conference. Before the arrest, I looked forward to this conference. After the arrest, I forced myself to go since all the expenses were paid in advance. Amazingly, the Lord met me there and loved on me through His faithful servants. After giving my speech and receiving my evaluation, the evaluator took a few minutes to minister to each person personally. It was one…

Never Give Up!

Shonda Savage Whitworth

hope

When circumstances look the darkest, don’t give up! There’s a cliché that says, “winners never quit and quitters never win.” If you want to win, continue to fight the good fight of faith. Six years ago, when we received the news that our son was arrested in connection with a tragedy, we went into shock. Yet, even in the state of shock, we grabbed hold of the truths of God’s Word and His promises for our family. When we recently…

A Lifestyle of Repentance

Shonda Savage Whitworth

Biblical Living

Jesus completed the will of the Father by being obedient to death on the cross. Then God the Father raised Him from the dead. All this was accomplished so that all people have an opportunity to be reconciled to the Father through Christ. “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’” (John 14:6 ESV) Jesus is the only way to the Father. In order to come…

Overcoming Daily Offenses

Shonda Savage Whitworth

Biblical Living

In our present culture, many have become conditioned to live in a state of offense. Below are examples of offenses I have observed in our day to day lives: We receive poor service by the wait staff at a restaurant. We expected better, so we grumble and complain about how the service should have been better and refuse to leave a tip, or a tip so small to teach the waiter a lesson that he should do better next time.…