Our guest speaker, Pastor Christine Sweeney, did an amazing job wrapping up our Bad Girls of the Bible series. The lyrics from Donna Summer’s song keep going off in my head, “Bad girls … Talkin’ ‘bout baaa-aaad girls, yeah.”

During the series, we’ve discussed several bad girls from the Bible:

• Eve, who became so focused on the one thing God told her she couldn’t have, that she forgot about all of his blessings and provisions.
• Jezebel, who was self-centered and would do anything to get what she wanted.
• Delilah, who was a master manipulator and betrayed Samson for money.
• Lot’s wife, who was so paralyzed in her past, that she missed out on the great future God was offering her.

It is really easy for me to look at the four women and shake my head in disgust. Unfortunately, I have to admit I have committed the same sins numerous times. I have been ungrateful, disobedient, self centered, manipulative, and stuck in the past.

In other words, at times I have made a real mess of my life and sinned greatly against God. So have you. We all have. I am ashamed to admit at times I have focused on what I think is best for me, instead of what God knows is best for me.

How do we change?

We keep our eyes fixed on Jesus and remember how much he loves us and all he has done for us.

Christine ended this amazing series by focusing on this verse from Hebrews:

Hebrews 12:2 NIV
Fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross …

We fix our eyes on Jesus. We realize that even though we have sinned against him, disobeyed him, and hurt him deeply, he still deeply loves us. He loves us so much that he left the magnificence of heaven to save us. He came down to earth, became a man to endure all that we endure, and yet, he never sinned. He suffered the agony and pain of the cross and rose from the dead to reconnect with God. We focus on all he has done for us. We know in our hearts he wants what is best for us, and we believe he is our Savior. We keep our eyes fixed on Jesus at all times, trusting his plan, obeying him, and praising him.

Questions:
How do you respond when things are not going the way you want? Which of the Bad Girls’ behavior do you struggle most with? Have you accepted Jesus as your Savior? If not, why?

Next Steps:
Spend some time daily thanking God for all he has done for you. Pray, ask him for wisdom when you are struggling, and obey him. Surrender your past to him, looking forward to his glorious plan.

Prayer:
Jesus, I am so overwhelmed by how much you love me. You are such an awesome God. You left the majesty of heaven and came to this earth as a servant to save me and reconnect me with God. I cannot imagine all the agony you must have suffered on the cross. Help me to trust that you have an amazing plan for my life, and give me the wisdom and desire to obey you. Remind me of all your blessings and provisions. Help me to always keep my eyes fixed on you, the pioneer and perfecter of my faith. Amen.

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This post was written by Marsha Raymond. Marsha has been happily married to her husband, Jeff, for 30 years. They have two grown sassy and fearless daughters. She loves spending time with God, her family and friends, reading, riding bicycles, yoga and walking.

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Dishwashers are the unsung heroes of kitchen appliances.

Yes, you read that right. And no, I promise I’m not crazy.

A few years ago, my family completely redid our kitchen. Not just repainting the walls and installing a new light fixture, but a total gutting and re-making of the room. Cabinets ripped out, the tile floor broken to bits, the sink removed, and … I think you get the picture. During that time, we washed the dishes in the laundry room.

That’s when I decided that, no matter how much I thought I had disliked washing dishes before, it was far less miserable than when we were without a dishwasher or a sink in the kitchen.

Now with the kitchen beautifully completed, I look back and the time without a kitchen seems like a blip. But in the moment, it felt like remodeling the kitchen required more effort than it was worth.

Sometimes, I think that’s what it feels like when God is transforming us.

Romans 12:2
Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

This verse reveals that God changes us by shifting the way we think, sculpting our mindsets and thought patterns to mirror his truth. One tiny word in the verse sheds an important light on this process, however: let. We must let God transform us, trusting and surrendering as he grows us.

This weekend, Pastor Christine Sweeney unpacked the story of Lot’s wife and detailed how Lot’s family received warning of the coming destruction of Sodom, yet, still did nothing. Two simple verses struck me.

Genesis 19:16-17
¹⁶ When Lot still hesitated, the angels seized his hands and the hands of his wife and two daughters and rushed them to safety outside the city, for the Lord was merciful. ¹⁷ When they were safely outside the city, one of the angels ordered, “Run for your lives! And don’t look back or stop anywhere in the valley! Escape to the mountains, or you will be swept away!”

When Lot and his family dallied, God’s angels pulled them to safety, toward God’s plan. Eventually, they stopped traveling with Lot’s family and gave them instructions for continuing. Lot’s family had been brought this far, and now, they had to let God lead them. As a good Father, God doesn’t force us to obey his callings, he invites us to.

Lot’s wife chose to ignore that invitation. She was too enamored with where she’d been to focus on what lay ahead. Whatever Sodom held, she prioritized it more and trusted herself more than she trusted God’s plan.

The same holds true for us. At times, we hold more tightly to who we were than to where God is leading us. It’s easy to fall back into old habits and our pre-Jesus mindsets. Change is uncomfortable.

But we have to keep our hearts open to God’s transformation in us, even when we think we’re making little progress. He takes our broken, sinful messes and weaves them into stories of grace, redemption, and love. He renovates the way we think, replacing the lies we rehearse with his truth. He rewires what we value—our own comfort, success, and pleasure—so that we hunger for more of him instead. It all starts with us letting him work in our lives.

Our God is in the business of total remodels, after all.

Questions:
What mindsets do you have that you think God is trying to transform?

Are you surrendering to that process?

Do you cling to your past so much that it prevents you from trusting God in the present?

Next Steps:
Identify the mindsets you need God to transform and repent.

Find Bible verses that speak to those issues and memorize them. Recite them to yourself throughout your day.

Prayer:
Dear Lord, thank you for the way you transform my life. You don’t leave me where I’m at, but rather, lead me to becoming more like you. Please help me identify my mindsets that contradict your truth. Give me the courage to surrender them to you and let you transform them. The future you are leading me toward is far better than anything in my past. In Jesus’ name, amen.

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This post was written by Sarah Pagel, a regular contributor and editor or the LivingitOut.

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Over the weekend, we had the pleasure of hearing from guest speaker, Pastor Christine Sweeney from The Tabernacle Church. She wrapped up our series Bad Girls of the Bible with Lot’s wife. Unlike Eve, Jezebel, and Delilah, we do not even know her name.

The Bible has more written about her death than any other part of her life. But what we do know about her is that she was married to Lot, who was the nephew of the patriarch Abraham. In Genesis 12:1, the Lord told Abraham, “leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you.” And so, Abraham obeyed the Lord’s request—he and his wife (Sarah) and Lot and his wife packed all their possessions and set out on this life-transforming adventure. They left their idols behind to follow the one true God, and he was faithful to them.

It is necessary to know where and what they left behind to better understand what would eventually set Lot’s wife up for her demise. They lived in the capital city of Ur in the region of Sumeria. This was a thriving community with many people, full of cultural and spiritual traditions.

Eventually, Lot and his wife parted company with his uncle, and they moved from the pastoral land to the city of Sodom. The Bible often describes Sodom as a sinful city known for its wickedness. In this city, there were likely elements of life that reminded Lot’s wife of her homeland, Ur. Perhaps, she welcomed this reconnection with her past as it seemed comfortable and familiar, leading her to immerse herself completely.

The outcry to the Lord about Sodom and its evil doings was so great that he sent two angels to warn Lot that he would be destroying the city completely. The angels told Lot to warn his other relatives in town, so he rushed out to tell his daughters’ fiancés, but they thought he was joking. The next morning, the angels were insistent that Lot hurry his family out of the city or they would be swept away during the destruction. After much resistance, the angels grabbed the hands of Lot, his wife, and his two daughters and rushed them to safety outside the city (Genesis 19:12-16).

Genesis 19:17
When they were safely out of the city, one of the angels ordered, “Run for your lives! And don’t look back or stop [emphasis added] anywhere in the valley! Escape to the mountains, or you will be swept away!”

Lot and his family were given their instructions by the angels—the outcome was in their hands. Unfortunately, Lot’s wife did not heed the angel’s warning.

Genesis 19:26
But Lot’s wife looked back as she was following behind him, and she turned into a pillar of salt.

WHY did she turn around?

In Christine’s words, “She had been freed from the city, but she was still captive to her past.” Lot’s wife was disobedient to the word of the Lord, so she was forever preserved in salt. She lost out on the abundant life that God had planned for her.

Luke 17:33 NIV
Whoever tries to keep their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life will preserve it.

We need to use Lot’s wife’s mistake as an example of how to live our lives. We need to exchange our familiar, comfortable lives for the Lord’s plan which can be unfamiliar and scary.

Why? Because preserving the past can paralyze your future.

Questions:
Have you been freed from something but are still captive to the past? If so, how can you leave the past in the past?

Are you clinging to something powerless when you could be placing your trust in the Lord and the abundant life he has planned for you?

Next Steps:
Take an in-depth look at your current situation. Is your lifestyle like Lot’s wife? Are you living for earthly possessions? Or are you living open-handedly, ready to take what God is trying to give you? If you are ready to move forward and stop focusing on the past, let us know you’re ready to take a next step.

Prayer:
Dear heavenly Father, open my eyes to the abundant life you have planned for me. Keep me looking forward and remove my desire to look back. Thank you for freeing me from my past and giving me a bright future. Thank you for the gift of salvation. In your son’s glorious name, I pray, amen.

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This post was written by Jennifer Macke. Jenn has a son, daughter, granddaughter, and grandson, and she thanks God every day for them. She is enjoying retirement and feels blessed to be writing for LivingItOut. She was raised in an Evangelical Church, but her spiritual life awakened when she started attending CedarCreek.

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Last weekend, Oregon Campus Pastor Andy Rectenwald presented another “Bad Girl of the Bible”—Delilah. What an amazingly cunning and beautiful woman she was!

She dangled her womanly wiles before Samson, seducing him with her words. She played on his emotions, pleaded with him, and threatened him, all the while keeping him in a heightened state of sexual desire. Her persistence in learning the mysterious source of his great strength is noteworthy, except it was for the sole purpose of her own monetary gain—at Samson’s expense.

For master manipulators like Delilah, it is a way of life. They will do whatever it takes to get what they want; no price is too high for someone else to pay. Were it not for those of us too trusting and/or passive for our own good, the manipulators in our society would never succeed at their game!

There are many places where manipulators do their deeds. It can be in the home, in the workplace—literally anywhere and everywhere people co-exist. Undoubtedly, many have experienced firsthand the effects of the master manipulator in the workplace. The persistence of such a person is nearly impossible to duplicate. Were it possible to harness the negative energy expended by them and put that energy to good use, it would make a profound difference in every workplace! Instead, it is with utmost skill that the workplace manipulator manages to watch, work, and wear down the best of bosses. In essence, Delilah did that to Samson. She wore him down with her persistence, not to mention, her charm. Her play on words.

The workplace manipulator’s uncanny timing at approaching a boss when he/she is deeply engaged mentally and asking for “employee privileges” is just one of the tricks in their bag of tricks. It is but one way that manipulators, like Delilah, get what they long for. The thought of causing harm or extra work for others is never a concern—it is all about them—the manipulator. In the extreme case, it truly is as though no one else matters. May we each pledge to never  be that person.

Questions:
What is more important to you—people or things? Do you have the tendency to manipulate others for personal gain? Do you carefully consider the needs/opinions of others? Do you need to sharpen your skills in handling manipulators?

Next Steps:          
Push the clutter out of your mind through heartfelt prayer that focuses on you and your sinful nature rather than others. Educate yourself about manipulation. Read this Focus on the Family article: https://www.focusonthefamily.com/get-help/how-to-deal-with-manipulative-people/. Seek the face of God, taking a close look at personal motives and what drives those motives. Ask God to give you a heart of genuine love for others.

If you find yourself in a manipulative relationship and looking for steps that will lead to healing, consider checking out Celebrate Recovery.

Prayer:
Heavenly Father, thank you for offering a path to wholeness through Christ. We live in a broken world where too often we are self-focused. Empower me to reach beyond myself to share with others the restorative work you have done and continue to do in my life. Help me to always remember I am nothing and have nothing of true value to offer without you in my life. Forgive me for the times I fail to remember people matter more than things. Help me to step into difficult conversations when I sense manipulation is at work. In Jesus’ name, amen.

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This post was written by Karen Peck. Karen retired in March 2018 from Lucas County Information Services. She has been married over forty years. Karen rejoices over God’s faithfulness and God’s patience in her life and in her marriage. Nothing matters more to Karen than her relationship with God and her entire family. Her immeasurable faith in Christ and His ability to restore the broken runs deep within.

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At the end of Oregon Campus Pastor Andy Rectenwald’s weekend message, he shared that we don’t know what happened to Delilah. Andy said that, sometimes, while preparing to officiate at funerals, family members find it difficult to share kind and loving things about the deceased. What a sad legacy to leave behind! Perhaps, no one cared enough to write about what happened to Delilah in the end.

After manipulating Sampson and others, using them to get what she wanted, she had no one left. I’ve been that person in my family, and I have family that has been there as well! After all, manipulation can really hurt!

There have been times that I’ve used manipulation to get what I wanted, because I knew what was “best for the person” I was manipulating. Is there anyone who hasn’t manipulated their children into eating their vegetables to get dessert? Or used manipulation to grant a child’s request to bribe them to clean their room? Perhaps you’ve left an item “in your cart” on Amazon trying to manipulate your spouse into a birthday present?

Powers of manipulation should be used for good. If people are the means to the end, we will regret it in the end. If a co-worker gets “thrown under the bus” for your promotion, will you really enjoy your new position?

We have an opportunity in our lives to impact others positively to help them get what they want instead of getting what we want from them. I could have planted a garden with my children and given them the chance to experience vegetables in a whole new way! I could have asked for that special gift instead of leaving hints.

What if we took everyday opportunities and used them to empower the people we come into contact with? When we do, we leave a legacy. A little encouragement goes a long way. I’ve seen my prayers answered, and the impossible become possible through waiting on God.

The older I get, the more I consider what kind of legacy I will leave behind. I won’t leave a bunch of money or many belongings, but I hope to leave behind a lot of good memories and loving traditions.  God only knows the way my story will end. I can say that, today, I live my life in hopes that I will leave a legacy that points to God.

Questions:
Are you using powers of manipulation to gain control over others? Are you exploiting someone’s weakness to get what you want? Are you asking a loved one to give up their dreams in support of yours?

Next Steps:
Read Judges 16 for yourself. Ask God to reveal to you if you are using manipulation against another for self gain. If you are, repent and ask for forgiveness.

Prayer:
Father, I pray that you will guide me in the way that leads only to you.  Let any influence or powers of manipulation be used for your good and not my own. Help me to build a legacy of love and joy and peace with the people that I come into contact with. I give myself to you, Lord, to be used by you in any way that you can. I pray that your will, and not my own, be done both in heaven and here on Earth. In Jesus’ name, amen.

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This post was written by Julie Estep. Julie loves her husband John and their combined five adult children and four grandchildren. Her favorite activities are walking their two dogs and golfing. She loves sharing her faith and is grateful for the chance to be a LIO contributor.

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