Heart Matters

“And again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. Then those who heard it, being convicted by their conscience, went out one by one, beginning with the oldest even to the last.  And Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst.”  John 8:8-9

I recently submitted an article to a Christian Magazine for publication.  The subject was about the importance about not judging others.  As a believer who fell hard into legalism at one time, I’m serious about not wrongfully judging others (both believers and non believers) and about not having a wrong heart attitude towards other people.  But I have to say I submitted that particular article out of obedience to the Lord. I truly felt after much prayer and seeking His face that it was the article He wanted me to submit for publishing.  However, out of all the articles I’ve written, it wasn’t one of my favorites, also because it’s (judging) is such a delicate subject and one which can difficult to rightfully understand, I felt apprehensive about it.  “Judging Others” is a subject which can be greatly misunderstood, so  I carefully reviewed my article over and over again to make sure it was doctrinally sound.  The last thing I’d ever want to do is water down the truth especially as it pertains to God’s call to holiness in the life of a believer.  I’m not oblivious to the fact that there are believers out there who are big on “not judging others” but who refuse to ever hold other believers accountable.  I also know there are those Christians (like I used to be) who are almost consumed with making other believers behave and live in a holy manner acceptable in their sight leaving no room for God’s own process of spiritual growth in the life of His children.  They impose their lists of “do’s and don’t” on the lives of believers and unbelievers alike and in doing so do much damage to the cause of Christ.  We can all tend to lean to one extreme or the other.  But God is a God of Balance.

By the way, I did submit the article for publication.  It hasn’t been published yet because these things take time.  But we will see if indeed it was the one God wanted me to submit if it is chosen for publication.  I’ll keep you posted.  Now back to the blog (Lol). Lately I’ve been thinking, no realizing  that often times when people accuse you of judging them, since they have no real way of knowing the intent of your heart, they can have it all wrong. I’m starting to see that the real reason they feel you are judging them is not because you are, but rather is because their own conscience is convicting them.  WOW!  Okay for those of you who are reading this and saying “duuuhhh Kirsten”, I’m sorry but y’all are going to have to indulge me for a moment.  I mean, wow, there have been so many times when I have been accused of judging when I really felt I wasn’t.  I would self-examine and just come to the conclusion that I must have come across that way.  My personality is such that I’m straight forward, to the point, and no holds barred.  But I am also a very loving and kind person (and yes Kat, I still think I’m sweet too) too.  I always took full responsibility when that indictment was handed down to me.  I had a past of legalism and actually being a judgmental out of order person-guilty as charged.  But I wasn’t always being judgmental and there have been times when the label has been permanently affixed to me when it wasn’t further from the truth.  Chains loosed!

Continue reading The Conviction of Conscience →

Heart Matters

“I know, O LORD, that Your judgments are right, And that in faithfulness You have afflicted me.  Psalm 119:75

Every now and then I muster up the courage to catch a couple of episodes of the series Intervention.  I have to make sure my heart is prepared for the brokenness I’m about to witness, the sadness I’ll have to partake of, just because of my decision to watch the show. At times it seems almost sinful to watch a show which reveals a person at what seems to be their utmost lowest level ever.  It’s hard to watch a young lady so intoxicated she’s falling down in the street as she tries her hardest to make it to the store to buy even more alcohol.  It’s heart wrenching to see a person having so much potential yet spending day in and day out completely checked out of life and suffering every moment of their sobriety.  It’s a tough show to watch.  Yet something about it draws me to it.  I’ve watched it enough to know there are always two main points regarding the person’s life that’ll be revealed: the painful event(s) which led to their brokenness in the first place, causing something inside of them to seem to have a subconscious desire to die; and the result of the intervention when their loved ones all pull together for the common goal of getting him/her the help they so desperately need. The reason I’m willing to go through the discomfort of seeing another person’s pain is because there’s a chance I’ll also get to witness their healing.

Intervention is a show which reveals how extremely broken we can become when we are abused, mistreated, and greatly hurt.  It shows how for some, when that brokenness is left unresolved and hasn’t properly been dealt with, it can lead to a road of inconceivable addiction and unbelievable dysfunction.  When the sinful actions of others break and crush us we can tire of our very lives and many on the show, in their effort to escape their pain and sorrow, choose instead to live in a sort of catatonic state, closely resembling the walking dead.  Occasionally, I watch Intervention because it’s a show that offers hope and a chance for a new life.  However, in order for that to happen truth has to show up, and be dealt with, and get accepted.  The person has to tire of their same old ways and habits and realize that they can’t do it on their own. Only then can the person make  the choice to accept what’s been prepared for them, to save them out of their addiction, heal their brokenness, and break the chains of bondage.

Okay so this blog isn’t a promo for the show Intervention.  However, whenever I watch it I can’t help but think about how broken we all are, or have been, in some shape or form. Like the addicts on the show, for some of us, we too weren’t able to be rescued until we hit rock bottom.  For some of us it’s not until we are completely down that we’re able to look up and cry out for help to GOD. For many of us, this is how we were led to our salvation. Our brokenness caused us to accept the truth-that we are broken, separated from God because of our sin, and the fact that only Jesus made a way to save us and fill our void. When we made the choice to believe in the resurrected Christ and HIS finished work on the cross, our wounds were healed, our chains were loosed, and we were set free to freely live for HIM. Our brokenness ultimately led to our wholeness in Christ and we now know that only JESUS could have ever filled our voids.  But that’s not the end of it…..no, as we begin our new life in Christ-it is only the beginning!

Continue reading Divine Intervention →