Sin at the Well

What is sin? There are many different types of sin in the world, but the easiest way for me to describe it is: an action or thought that puts a barrier between us and God. When we sin, it often feels good in the moment but after there is a feeling of regret. That feeling of regret from my perspective is the Holy Spirit poking at my heart and saying, “Whoa, that was not the best choice to make.”.           

Today is going to be a difficult topic and I want each of you to take a moment and pray. Ask God to reveal the areas in your life that you are struggling. I believe that the Holy Spirit will instantly bring to your mind what you need to repent of and it’s important to make a change at that point.  

I will also preface that this question is more easily discussed in a group setting with people you trust. So, with that said:   

Are there any Sins to Repent of?

Un-Biblical Judgment

The Samaritan woman, like many of us, had an obvious sin in her life: she was unmarried and living with a man. But that’s not where I want to go with this today. It’s easy to point a finger and say, “the way you are living is wrong!”. I believe it is important, though, to look at why you want to point out someone’s sin.

When approaching the sin in someone’s life it is best that:

1. You are approaching them in love. 

2. They believe in the same moral standards.

When Jesus, pointed out the sin in the Samaritan Woman’s life. He was straightforward and gave her a chance to speak, to repent. Can you imagine? She repented to Jesus, who is God. Did he turn away, yell “sinner” and go on his way? No! Jesus spoke truth and poured life into the woman. Because of that she was changed.

In Matthew 7:3-5 the Apostle says:

“Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.”

Unlike Jesus, we my friends are not sinless. In fact, we are all sinful creatures it’s just that some people’s sin can be more noticeable than others. Which is why it’s important to repent and pray over our own sins so that we can help the people around us. Some sins are more noticeable than others, but any kind of sin will keep us from God. When approaching the people around us about the sins in their lives. Remember to be like Jesus and love them despite the sin. None of us are perfect, but that’s why God sent us Jesus.

Bethany Thomas is the Publicity Coordinator and a contributing writer for Shaken & Stirred. She is a daughter of God, a wife, and a dog mom. When not writing for the blog, you are most likely to find her reading a fantasy novel or crafting at her home in Sapulpa, OK.

Photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash

Woman at the Well

Have you ever noticed that in church we talk about things like our testimony, or evidence of proof? When this happens there’s a tendency to start at the beginning of your “walk” with Christ. This can make for a really long testimony if you asked Jesus into your heart at the age of 3, like I did. I’ve actually never loved my testimony, because it feels like nothing has happened in my life. Nothing that could help someone see Jesus anyway. In college, someone told me that my story reminded them of Esther. That while Esther never heard God speak directly to her, she still had faith in Him and that faith gave her the courage to save her people. This really encouraged me and made me more likely share that part of my testimony.

I’ve realized something though in the last few years. My testimony doesn’t have to include my whole walk with God. My testimony can be as simple as a struggle that should, according to the world, make me into a bitter, unpleasant person. The Samaritan woman does what each of us should do when we have any kind of encounter with Christ. Share that moment with the people around us.        

Last week we read John 4:4-42 and we asked the “Question: What do we learn about God?”. This week please read through the story again and ask yourself the question:   

What Do We Learn About Man?

Mankind is Skeptical

After Jesus told the woman who He was, the Messiah, she had to spread the word. She told everyone she met about her encounter with Jesus and because of that people believed: 

“Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony […]. So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them […] And because of his words many more became believers. They said to the woman, ‘We no longer believe just because of what you said;
now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world.”
(John 4:39, 42)

But note, it was not until they heard from Jesus, himself, that some honestly believed. This is a great example of what each of us should do after we’ve come to know Jesus. Go out and proclaim who he is to us and to the world. There will be people though that need more than just a testimony. Remember, every time we share the Gospel we plant a seed of hope. But until a person goes to the source, the Bible, they won’t truly know God.

I encourage each of you, take a moment today and write down an encounter you had with God. This encounter could be something that happened in the past or something that happened recently. It doesn’t have to be “big”; it could be as simple as a verse you read in the Bible or an encounter you had in the grocery store. Think about what God is telling you through that moment and share it with someone who might need encouragement.    

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Please leave a comment about what you learned about man in this chapter.

Bethany Thomas is the Publicity Coordinator and a contributing writer for Shaken & Stirred. She is a daughter of God, a wife, and a dog mom. When not writing for the blog, you are most likely to find her reading a fantasy novel or crafting at her home in Sapulpa, OK.

Photo by Hannah Morgan on Unsplash

God at the Well

Can you imagine being hungry or thirsty? Could you see yourself turning down a sizzling pan of steak fajitas or a glass of water with the little condensation drops sliding down the side while feeling hunger pains?

That’s very similar to how we, as Christians, turn down a chance to read the Bible or spend a moment in prayer. It might be harder to diagnose spiritual hunger or thirst, but there are some clues that show we might be in need: anger, frustration, and depression. I personally struggle with those feelings. I feel so much better when I sit down and read a Psalm and maybe even do a little bit of Bible Journaling. But I don’t always make the time for those things.       

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I’m going to ask you all to read John 4:4-42, the Samaritan Woman at the Well. Over the next 4 weeks we are going to dig into the story of this woman and how her encounter with Jesus changed her for the better. But how can we study the difference Jesus made in this woman without asking the question:

What Do We Learn About God?

God knows us

Jesus knew who the woman was before he ever met her:

“He told her, ‘Go, call your husband and come back.’
‘I have no husband,’ she replied.
Jesus said to her, ‘You are right when you say you have no husband. The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have just said is quite true.’”
(John 4:16-18)

Before He sat down at the well, Jesus knew exactly who the woman was. Her story, her desires, her failings, and successes. The Samaritan woman did not know who Jesus was, she could have easily lied about her marital status. But because she didn’t, she was able to have a heart changing conversation with the Son of God.       

God knows who you are and what you are wanting with your life. He knows that I have a deep desire to be a mother, though I am still waiting for that prayer to be answered. The waiting can be the hardest part about prayer. It is during the waiting that fear sets in and causes us to make wrong decisions. I don’t believe the Samaritan woman chose to have so many “husbands”. I believe she was chasing after something to fill the void in her heart.

Not long ago I heard a woman speak about how God told her that she would not marry or have children. That day a small thistle of fear was planted by Satan in my heart. What if the silence, I hear from God is His decision that I am not meant to have children? Every month when I know, for sure, that my belly holds no life. I feel that thistle sprout anew, strangling my hope and creating a void. I try to fill my void with mothering my dog, binge watching Netflix, and reading fantasy novels.

I chase after things I believe will help me manage. But the one thing that has brought me any peace is going to God, ironically or rightly. Which leads me to my next answer to the question above:            

He wants us to know Him

God desperately wants us to know Him. He sent Jesus down specifically for that reason, to create a bridge between us and Him. In John 4:24 Jesus said to the Samaritan woman:

“God is spirit, and His worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.”

Our God wants to have a relationship that is deep and true with each one of us. There can be nothing sweeter than having those moments of quiet worship with God. It is in those moments that we can learn about God and discern if the voice we hear is God’s or Satan’s. That is where Satan is at his most clever. My fear that God will deny my prayer is the very thing that makes me avoid time with Him. But it’s the very thing I need in order to have peace and purpose in my life.  

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There are more answers that could come from the Question: What do we learn about God? But I want to hear from each of you, dear ladies, who are reading these blog posts. Please leave a comment with your thoughts on this passage and what God is revealing about Himself to you!    

Bethany Thomas is the Publicity Coordinator and a contributing writer for Shaken & Stirred. She is a daughter of God, a wife, and a dog mom. When not writing for the blog, you are most likely to find her reading a fantasy novel or crafting at her home in Sapulpa, OK.

Photo by Frank Albrecht on Unsplash

Shaken & Stirred: An Adoption Story

I was born somewhere in the state of Mississippi in May of 1975. I was 5 lbs. and 5 oz. with red hair and the nurses called me Sara. The end. This is all I know of my birth and the beginnings of my life.

Sometime later, I don’t know if it was weeks or months, I was adopted by a couple that had a 3 year old boy. The boy that became my brother had been adopted as an infant, just like me, and was not related to me or my parents by blood.

When I was little, I didn’t understand adoption. I didn’t understand why the woman who carried me in her belly didn’t want me. My mom made me read a book about adoption and how, according to the book, I was special because my mom and dad got to pick me. It made it seem as if everyone else born into a family is just the luck of the draw, but somehow adoption was supposed to make me special. Instead of feeling special, I felt ugly and unwanted. I didn’t have a good relationship with my mom. I felt like I could never please her or measure up to what she thought I was supposed to be.

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Jeremiah 1:5 says:

“Before I made you in your mother’s womb, I chose you. Before you were born, I set you apart for a special work.”

When I became pregnant with my first child, I was in awe of how God created us to carry and sustain life inside of us. I found myself thinking more and more about the woman that carried me in her belly. I wasn’t thinking about how she didn’t want me anymore. Instead I was thinking about how very much she must have loved me. She carried me in her growing belly, feeling all of my kicks and nudges. In fact, I began to believe that she loved me so much that she chose to go through all of that, so that I could have life! There is no greater unconditional, sacrificial love.

Here’s the kicker though…I also know a Father. A Father that had a son. He gave that son up too. Not because He didn’t love his son, but because He loved me and He loved you, so very much that He wanted to give us life! He chose to go through death on a cross so that we could have life eternal with Him. There is no greater unconditional, sacrificial love.

God is that Father and that day on the alter when I was 8 years old, He adopted me into His family. Not because I had pleased Him or was anywhere near what He created me to be, but because He made me and chose me for a special purpose. He shook me that day and He shakes me still.

The blood of Jesus makes it possible for you to be adopted into God’s family. In fact, adoption through Jesus is the only way into His family. Turns out, my mom was right. Adoption does make me special.

Being shaken by God is the beginning of my life story and I’m constantly stirred to seek Him more. To know Him more. To love Him more. Shaken & Stirred is my adoption story.

I pray that it will be yours as well.

Mary Swafford is the founder of Shaken & Stirred, Meals that Matter, Coffee Talk, and a Co-Owner of Boulder Coffee in downtown Sand Springs. She is a wife, a mother of 3 beautiful children, but most importantly a daughter of the most high God. You are likely to find her chugging or serving coffee, sitting in a tattooist’s chair, or making friends out of strangers.