Casting nets...or stones?

"God has called us to cast nets, not cast stones."

This was a status update on my Facebook the other day. While I posted it for everyone to see--to be honest--it was meant for me because these were the exact words the Lord spoke into my heart a few hours prior.

I was sitting at Starbucks with my Bible open in front of me teaching a lesson on studying the Scriptures to one of my sweet boys...Sounds great, right--like I should be scoring some mega-Christian bonus points or something?! Just keep reading...

It's roughly 9:30 in the morning, and most people in the Starbucks are either dressed one of three way: business-casual, mothers in their work-out clothes, or people (like me) that have quickly thrown on wrinkly pants and a shirt in a hurry to get some much-needed-Monday-morning-java.  No one really paid much attention to the other because we are all totally absorbed in our own worlds…some working, some reading, some chatting with friends… Until in walks this 40+ year-old woman, and the 20-something people in this Starbucks were suddenly very aware of not what we were wearing, but staring at what this woman was wearing.  I know that I was not the only who was staring because when I glanced around it seemed that everyone’s eyes were glued on this lady.  While I could only see her from the back, I was astounded by how tight her Victoria Secret shirt and Bebe jeans were painted onto her perfectly (very obviously enhanced) shapely body...

As she walked over to put cream in her coffee I saw her 6-inch patent leather platform black stilettos.  Yep, that’s right:

6-inch.

Platform.

Patent-leather.

Black stilettos.

4-descriptive words that could be shortened and just as effective with 4-simple letters:

S-E-X-Y

And let me tell you this woman oozed everything sexy.  

Now, let me remind you that my Bible lay open in front of me as I sat there wondering what in the world this woman was thinking?!  WHY on EARTH would she dress like that?!  Didn’t she know what people would THINK of her?! There is no way those shoes were comfortable to wear, so what was her rational for wearing them other than to be intentionally seductive?

Then she turned around and our eyes locked. Instantly, my ugly, judgmental heart shattered into humble pieces.  In that moment, it frankly did not matter what she wearing, what she looked like, what shoes she wore: because the only thing I could see was her eyes.  Eyes that didn’t exude sexiness but instead were shadowed with deep sadness.  If eyes are windows to the soul, like that old saying goes, this woman’s soul was profoundly hurting and broken.  Again, all while I had my Bible out in front of me judging her, criticizing her…casting stones at her. 

Unexpectedly, she walked over and introduced herself to me.  Quietly said her name, and asked if I was home schooling my son.  We continued to speak for the next half hour and I found out that her two boys had just been kicked out of their third school—just this year. 


She was a divorced mother who was weary.  
A momma that was hurting.  
A woman who needed a friend... 


I almost missed it because all my judging heart could see was the outside, not even giving a passing thought to look further.  (Thank God for His Grace.)

After she left, I couldn’t stop thinking about John 8….and wondering if I had been there with Jesus, maybe I would have been in the back observing from afar the haughty Pharisees judge the adulterous woman… probably while nodding my head in agreement with them?  Maybe I would have even been one holding a stone ready to throw, all while pondering what that woman had been thinking?  How sad. 


Instead of having the heart of Jesus, ready to reach out to the broken and lost…I had the eyes of a Pharisee ready to point a finger of opinion based on what simply what I saw on the surface. 

This has weighed so heavily on my heart, and has been something I have had to seek forgiveness and counsel from the Lord.  2 Corinthians 5:16-21 has been incredibly encouraging and on the forefront of my time with Jesus He has shined His light on this area in my life:

“So we have stopped evaluating others from a human point of view. At one time we thought of Christ merely from a human point of view. How differently we know him now…”

This is exactly what I had done with this woman in Starbucks.  The only thoughts I had towards her were critical and evaluating what really did not matter, and by doing so, I closed myself off from an opportunity to share God’s love, and fulfill what God has called me (as a Christ-follower) to do by loving others, building relationships in order to share the Good News. 

“And God has given us [as Christ-followers] this task of reconciling people to him. For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to Himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation…So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us…”

So, again, if God has commissioned me, as a Christ-follower, to be a representative of Jesus I sadly missed the heart of Christ in that moment because I was filled with judgment.  The truth is Jesus did not come to judge the world, but as Luke 19:10 beautifully affirms, “For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost.”

We are Christ’s ambassadors…not to judge the world…but to seek and save the lost through the Cross of Christ. 

I love what the Apostle Paul wrote in 1 Timothy 1:15:

“Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners--of whom I am the worst.” 

I am so thankful the Lord has admonished my heart and thoughts... drawing me closer Him, exposing what is offensive to Him, all so I can have the honor and joy to share about the Hope we have in Him with others. 

Be Still and Know that Jesus has called us to represent His Love to others who do not know Him.  We cannot accomplish this—I can’t accomplish this—if the hands we should be using to reach out to others are filled with stones to throw at them. 

Pure

"Going through the motions doesn't please you, a flawless performance is nothing to you. I learned God-worship when my pride was shattered. Heart-shattered lives ready for love don't for a moment escape God's notice." Psalm 51:15-17 (MSG)


"Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven." Matthew 18:3-5 (ESV)

Be Still and Know that the greatest thing you can ever do for the Lord is to worship him with a humbled, teachable spirit...a heart like a child's.

His Blood

"He personally carried our sins in his body on the cross so that we can be dead to sin and live for what is right. By his wounds you are healed." 1 Peter 2:24


But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed." Isaiah 53:5


Be still and know, dear friend, that His wounds became your healing.

40 I AMs

We are in the middle of a series at my church called "Stuck." My pastor was talking about how sometimes we allow negative influences to impact our perspectives of what we believe about ourselves, and ultimately what we believe about God. He went on to suggest reading the "40 I Am's" that are written throughout Scripture and confess (acknowledge, declare one's belief or faith in) them. Declaring the "40 I AMs" on a daily will help you to see yourself the way God sees you. When you begin to see yourself from God’s perspective, the opinions of others don’t alter the reality who you are in Him.

You are who God says you are all because of Jesus Christ.


1. A Child of God. Romans 8:16
2. Redeemed from the Hand of the Enemy. Psalms 107:2
3. Forgiven. Colossians 1:13-14
4. Saved by Grace through Faith. Ephesians 2:8
5. Justified. Romans 5:1
6. Sanctified. 1 Corinthians 1:2
7. A New Creature. 2 Corinthians 5:17
8. Partaker of His Divine Nature. 2 Peter 1:4
9. Redeemed from the Curse of the Law. Galatians 3:13
10. Delivered from the Powers of Darkness. Colossians 1:13
11. Led by the Spirit of God. Romans 8:14
12. A Son of God. Romans 8:14
13. Kept in Safety wherever I go. Psalms 91:11
14. Getting all my needs met by Jesus. Philippians 4:19
15. Casting all my cares on Jesus. 1 Peter 5:7
16. Strong in the Lord and in the Power of His might. Ephesians 6:10
17. Doing all things through Christ who strengthens me. Philippians 4:13
18. An heir of God and a Joint heir with Jesus. Romans 8:17
19. An heir to the blessing of Abraham. Galatians 3:13-14
20. Observing and doing the Lord’s Commandments. Deuteronomy 28:12
21. Blessed coming in and blessed going out. Deuteronomy 28:6
22. An heir of eternal life. 1 John 5:11-12
23. Blessed with all spiritual blessings. Ephesians 1:3
24. Healed by His stripes. 1 Peter 2:24
25. Exercising my authority over the enemy. Luke 10:19
26. Above only and not beneath. Deuteronomy 28:13
27. More than a conqueror. Romans 8:37
28. Establishing God’s Word here on Earth. Matthew 16:19
29. An over comer by the blood of the Lamb and the Word of my testimony. Revelation 12:11
30. Daily overcoming the devil. 1 John 4:4
31. Not moved by what I see. 2 Corinthians 4:18
32. Walking by Faith and not by sight. 2 Corinthians 5:7
33. Casting down vain imaginations. 2 Corinthians 10:4-5
34. Bringing every thought into captivity. 2 Corinthians 10:5
35. Being transformed by renewing my mind. Romans 12:1-2
36. A laborer together with God. 1 Corinthians 3:9
37. The righteousness of God in Christ. 2 Corinthians 5:21
38. An imitator of Jesus. Ephesians 5:1
39. The light of the World. Matthew 5:14
40. Blessing the Lord at all times and continually praising Him with my mouth. Psalms 34:1

Bring it

I sat with a woman this week just talking about life, the ups, the downs, struggles in her marriage, and her feelings of distance from the Lord... As we went deeper into the conversation she mentioned that she and her husband have also been out of church for a while. When I asked why, especially since she feels a disconnect in her relationship with God, the hardships in her marriage, the trials of life that she is trying to navigate, she responded with: "My husband is not a spiritual leader in my home, and he just doesn’t want to go to church.”

It was so interesting to continue on in our time together, only because this has been a reoccurring conversation in my life over the past few months with several woman: A lack of spiritual leadership from their husbands, paired with, in all honestly, a laissez-faire mind-set from the wife that is subtly growing into resentment. “well…if he isn’t going to go to church, I guess we just won’t go. If he isn’t going to lead a family devotional, we just won’t have one…(insert grumbles here)” What’s even more interesting is that each of these sweet women has expressed the same frustrations, hurts and disappointments that the husband is not spiritually leading their family, but seems to give little consideration about what her contribution (or really lack of) to this impasse.

I know that is a tender spot for many women; trust me, no judgment from me as I write this post, because I GET it. By design, as women, we are wired to desire spiritual leadership from our husband…and when that doesn’t happen, it can be a source of frustration, hurt and disappointment for us, just as my friends are experiencing. Again, I GET it! But while I deeply empathize in this struggle, I passionately believe we must never, never, never use our husband’s spiritual struggles to negate our responsibilities in the role the Lord has defined for us as Godly wives. If you can relate, can I share with you a word that the Lord is pressing on my heart for those of us in this tough spot:

It is time to rise to your calling as a godly wife!

Before we ever point the finger or voice disappointment in our husbands for lack of leadership, we must stop to evaluate our own hearts, our response to God’s call on our lives, and really examine if we are fulfilling our distinct function God has designed for a Christ-centered marriage. (Matthew 5:7 “…first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.”)

One of my favorite verses that speaks to married woman, and the importance of our position is 1 Corinthians 7:14:

“… For the Christian wife brings holiness to her marriage…”

Oh, how this verse that fills my heart with purpose! As wives, we are to BRING holiness. But, let’s be honest here…that verse sounds a little overwhelming, right? I know when I first read that, all I could think of was that I was WAY under qualified! But, before you let it scare you (like it did me!) check out the definition of holy, it might give you a different perspective on really what God is asking of us:

ho·ly
1. specially recognized as or declared sacred by religious use or authority; consecrated: holy ground.
2. dedicated or devoted to the service of God, the church, or religion: a holy man.
3. saintly; godly; pious; devout: a holy life.
4. having a spiritually pure quality: a holy love.
5. entitled to worship or veneration as or as if sacred: a holy relic.

Note definition #2, “Dedicated or devoted…” Plug those words into what Peter wrote in 1 Corinthians 7:14, and it might shed a bit more understanding on that verse: “For the Christian wife brings [dedication and devotion for the Lord] to her marriage…. “

While it is the call of our husbands to be the spiritual leaders in our marriages, we cannot overlook our call from the Lord to bring dedication and devotion in our marriage.

To bring this back to the context of the struggles of yearning for our husband to be what God designed him to be, and those ever-draining Sunday morning battles of “church-or-no-church…” Here is some straight up truth, friend-to-friend: Whether or not your husband is fulfilling his God-given duty of leadership, going to church or not, in the Word or not… You must still continue to seek the Lord, be in the Word of God, and keep going to church…even if that means going alone for a while. Continue to strive to live a life worthy of your calling, sweet friend, walking out your faith, and more than anything, trusting and honoring the Lord with your actions.

“…even if some refuse to obey the Good News, your godly lives will speak to them without any words. They will be won over by observing your pure and reverent lives.” 1 Peter 3:1-2

Verses 1-2 are refreshing, but also so convicting for those of us who are in the middle of situations like this. Convicting and refreshing for the exact same reason: All God is asking us to do is obey Him, trust His Word…and He will take care of working in our spouse’s hearts. We don’t need to preach at our husband, try to guilt him, manipulate him, stress about pointing out every scripture we think will convict him…and frankly, we shouldn’t ever dare try to play the role of the Holy Spirit to our spouse. Instead, we must rise up, set our lives in response to God's ordained rhythm for our marriage, fulfilling the function God has designed for us. To put it simply: We need to focus on living our lives in such a way that honors the Lord, and let God use our behavior to impress into our husband’s spirit; trust the Lord that He is going to work in this situation.

And to just give you a little more encouragement and comfort for your heart if you are hurting: as much as we desire for our husband to lead our family spiritually--God desires it even more, because it is aligned with His will and perfect design!

“This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.” 1 John 5:14

Rise up, dear sister, and while doing so, keep taking your cries to the Lord, knowing He hears those prayers, has great compassion equipping you for this journey:

“For God did not give us a spirit of timidity [lacking in boldness or determination], but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.” 2 Timothy 1:7

So be still and know, sweet friend, the encouraging words of Psalm 37:4 “Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you your heart’s desires.”

Knowing God

Take Heart - Hillsong United - Lyrics [HD]

This is an incredible song that just speaks to my heart and encourages my spirit. The lyrics are amazing!