The Place of Restoration Podcast

Please enjoy Watchmen Wives’ first podcast and be blessed! Click this link: Restoration Podcast

Will It Be the Gnat or the Camel?

I remember a time when I was so focused on all sorts of little things that I was bothered by concerning my husband. I would often give voice to them: “When’s the last time you wrote me a poem?” “Why don’t you want to sit with me and talk with me for hours like we did when we first met?” I can go on and on. How about you? Do you find yourself making a big deal out of so many small things? We can call them gnats because gnats are so tiny but can make a big impact on our peace. Gnats are bothersome and can quickly gather in swarms to overwhelm us.
When my husband and I first married each other, I found myself being overwhelmed rather suddenly by the multitude of trivial offenses and complaints that I had swarmed against him.  They were such small matters and yet I would sift through his conduct and who he is as my husband and try to set all of those irritations apart to justify my own rebellious ways. God allowed me to drink my own water–my own foolishness–for quite some time. Take a look at these verses and the commentary that follows to see if something within you lights up with recognition,
Matthew 23:23-24 ~ ” “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. 24 You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.”
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary*~
“24. Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat—The proper rendering—as in the older English translations, and perhaps our own as it came from the translators’ hands—evidently is, “strain out.” It was the custom, says Trench, of the stricter Jews to strain their wine, vinegar, and other potables through linen or gauze, lest unawares they should drink down some little unclean insect therein and thus transgress (Le 11:20, 23, 41, 42)—just as the Buddhists do now in Ceylon and Hindustan—and to this custom of theirs our Lord here refers…and swallow a camel—the largest animal the Jews knew, as the “gnat” was the smallest; both were by the law unclean.”
When I read these verses this morning, I was reminded of how often I strained the gnats in favor of the camel. You might wonder what the camel was that I was swallowing in place of the gnats! The camel was my own sin!! I was swallowing the camel which was my own refusal to submit to God and to my husband. That was a far weightier and serious issue than for me to look for faults in my husband and to strain them to God in my prayers.  God turned my eyes to myself! Made me look at what I was really drinking! The verse that He corrected me with is Luke 6:41-42~ ” Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? 42″Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me take out the speck that is in your eye,’ when you yourself do not see the log that is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take out the speck that is in your brother’s eye.” I was using a faulty strainer! Instead of focusing on my husband’s conduct, I needed to clean up my own! God is good!!! He delivered me from straining the gnats in favor of swallowing the camels. I’m not saying we are to ignore the small things, but pray and ask God to reveal what the bigger issue at hand really is. Let Him be the strainer! Pray this blesses you ♡
Cassandra~
All rights reserved.

Have You Had Any Strange Fruit?

Is flirting really harmless? When does accepting a compliment become sin?

It was just a thought–a suggestion–that was introduced to Eve by the serpent. But that pleasantly framed suggestion spawned ideas that led Eve to challenge the authority and love of God. That is how the enemy uses flirtations to get unsuspecting people to slip into adulterous thinking. There is nothing wrong with accepting a genuine, respectful compliment and moving forward; but if you find yourself consistently anticipating someone other than your spouse’s verbal affections, you are in dangerous territory. If you find yourself enjoying others’ flirtations, ask yourself why you enjoy them and if they are a substitute for your spouse’s or lack thereof. If what others say to you makes you feel like there is someone better than your spouse, something is not right. It may seem harmless, but remember the serpent and beware of slipping into sin.
It was only a suggestion,after all.  However, it was that suggestion that gave rise to thoughts in Eve’s mind that there was something better for her than what God had already provided for her! Then, in the events that followed, a beautiful life that could have been spent living in perfection with her husband Adam was destroyed by sin. Don’t let that happen to you. If your spouse is sparse with offering you verbal affections or flirtations, do have patience and wait for them.  Reserve your desire to receive those affections from him/her. When it comes from their lips, it’s altogether more beloved and especially for you! Don’t partake of the strange fruit that is offered to you from others because, although it may look pleasant, the motive behind it being offered to you may be rooted in evil. Enjoy sweetness that comes from your spouse’s lips.
“Like an apple tree among the trees of the woods,
So is my beloved among the sons.
I sat down in his shade with great delight,
And his fruit was sweet to my taste.” ~Song of Solomon 2:3
~Cassandra♡
All rights reserved.

“A Heart of Integrity”

Jeremiah 4:3, NET Bible~ ” Yes, the LORD has this to say to the people of Judah and Jerusalem: “Like a farmer breaking up hard unplowed ground, you must break your rebellious will and make a new beginning; just as a farmer must clear away thorns lest the seed is wasted, you must get rid of the sin that is ruining your lives. “
“Integrity” means that one can be trusted to do the right thing, especially when he/she is not in the presence or supervision of others who may hold him accountable. Let’s take it a step further because we have to be honest and admit that there’s not much–if anything at all–that we as sinners do not need God’s help with. I like to include God in anything that is meant to define traits and characteristics of a person’s heart. So here’s my revised definition of integrity: “
A person with integrity not only does and says what is right and edifying to others, but (s)he also acknowledges triggers or temptations that entice him/her to do what is wrong–to sin. The man/woman who has integrity confesses those things to God and entreat Him for the strength to resist sin, and in turn, the person with integrity allows God to cleanse and renew their heart with the desire to walk/conduct themselves righteously. The person who has integrity does what is right not because others can see or benefit as a result of them doing what is right, but because the eyes of God see where no human eye can see–straight inside of the heart to determine their intentions.”
Isaiah 17:9-10~ ” ” The heart is more deceitful than all else And is desperately sick; Who can understand it? 10 “I, the LORD, search the heart, I test the mind, Even to give to each man according to his ways, According to the results of his deeds.” “
Ephesians 6:6~ “Not by the way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but as servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart”
The person who acts, speaks, thinks, and perceives with integrity relies on God; and,therefore, their integrity is a shield that keeps the lies of the enemy from penetrating its core. God knows the depths of our hearts and He can take what the enemy would use to fill your heart with thorns (sin and evil motives) and turn his dastardly schemes inside out!
He can take what the enemy means for our harm and use it for our good (Romans 8:28). Out of a sinning heart that is transformed by His Holy Spirit, He can turn it for that person’s good to provide them with a testimony. That person can then tell someone else who may be struggling with integrity that they too can live a righteous life in Christ! The thorns that were meant to choke your heart on the inside–God can turn your heart inside out and use those thorns as a shield to protect it! Those thorns that used to choke up your paths and block you from walking with integrity can serve as a testimony and a reminder that you can’t do it all on your own. To live a life of integrity means that you lean on the wisdom, strength, and power of God to follow after Jesus’ example. Amen! Have a Blessed day!
Proverbs 2:7-8~ “He stores up sound wisdom for the upright; He is a shield to those who walk in integrity, 8 Guarding the paths of justice, And He preserves the way of His godly ones.…”
Psalm 51:10~ ” Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me.”
~Cassandra Salamone, All Rights Reserved.

No Re-runs in This Marriage!

When I was a teenager, I would stay up late on Saturday nights and watch my favorite channel until all the shows would end. Sometimes I would fall asleep and later awaken to see a colorful screen that displayed a message that all of the scheduled programs had been run and the channel was off air. I would turn the television off and go to bed.
When we become born again in Christ, we are made new. We are to put off the “old man” and the works of the flesh (Galatians 5:19-21), so that we become more like Jesus every moment of every day (Colossians 3:8-10). Some programs–attitudes and behaviors–that have been scheduled to run need to be cancelled. They need to be shut down because they are interfering with the “programs” God has scheduled for your life and marriage. The programs He has scheduled include: “tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, long suffering, bearing with one another, forgiving one another and love” (Colossians 3:12-17).
As a born again Christian wife, I need to be certain that I am no longer playing those shows of the “old woman” I was. In Christ, I am a “new creation” and old, ungodly habits, ideals,and conduct have “passed away” (2 Corinthians 5:17). That means I cannot allow those old programs to resurface and resume because their time slots have been cancelled. When there is a re-run that haphazardly returns, the Holy Spirit airs a message similar to the photo in this post and reminds me that the “old me” was cancelled. “No re-runs! No resurrection of those old shows!”
I heed Him and I turn the set off or change the “channel”. I repent and get into my prayer “closet” and ask for God’s help because I am a new creation. No longer the contentious, disrespectful, unloving, wife. That is who I used to be. I change the channel and get back on God’s schedule. He is loving and merciful; and it’s always wonderful to hear the message in my heart “Now, back to our regularly scheduled program: “New Creation in Christ”.
Now, each day–each “episode” of my Heaven-winning show “New Creation in Christ”–just keeps getting better and better! God helps me to become more like Christ– that I can “become the righteousness of God in Him” (2Corinthians 5:21).
We have to trust that God’s schedule for our lives is so much better than our own! 😀 God is good!!!

“Wives, submit to your own husbands, as is fitting in the Lord.
Husbands, love your wives and do not be bitter towards them.”
(Colossians 3:18-19).

“The Forbidden Fruit Within” : Updated Pic

In the Garden of Eden, Satan lured Eve from a path characterized by her perfected submission to God and Adam,her husband, to a twisted maze of destruction and deceit. The wily serpent tricked her with the promise that she would attain understanding like God–that she would be like God–if she ate a piece of fruit from the forbidden tree of knowledge. In that moment when she considered the serpent’s offer, Eve revealed her doubt and trust in God’s sovereignty; and she also revealed that what she was contemplating was actually rebellion. She did not want to submit and trust in the order and covering her husband Adam provided her by God’s abundant provision. She revealed a discontented heart. They lived in paradise, for goodness sakes; but it was not good enough for Eve. Satan held out a lie in the form of a fruit; and she consumed it. She devoured the devil’s lie and dressed up her covetous heart’s desires by persuading Adam that the fruit was good for them to eat after all–despite God’s command that they should NOT eat fruit from that particular tree!
*Genesis 3:1-6 ” Now the serpent was more subtle and crafty than any living creature of the field which the Lord God had made. And he [Satan] said to the woman, Can it really be that God has said, You shall not eat from every tree of the garden? And the woman said to the serpent, We may eat the fruit from the trees of the garden, Except the fruit from the tree which is in the middle of the garden.

God has said, You shall not eat of it, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.

But the serpent said to the woman, You shall not surely die, For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing the difference between good and evil and blessing and calamity.
And when the woman saw that the tree was good (suitable, pleasant) for food and that it was delightful to look at, and a tree to be desired in order to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate; and she gave some also to her husband, and he ate.”

When we accept the devil’s lie–when we sin–we exchange our protective covering that is provided by God. It’s almost as if we sign an invisible (spiritual) permission slip that allows the enemy to wreak havoc in our lives. By making sinful choices, we suffer the consequences from biting into the lie within our hearts that we know better than God and that, basically, His plans and provisions are inadequate. In our modernized lives, we are not tempted with a simple piece of fruit. Our “fruit” is candied to make the temptation alluring with its illusion that it will provide something better in our lives. That it will be a source of joy and success. The lie promises to give us a better life–a better husband. A better wife. As soon as we digest the lie and commit sin such as adultery, we give the enemy permission to make us suffer the consequences. That lie is the fruit we imbibe, but we are the ones who allow the seeds of temptation to be planted in our hearts in the first place. Our heart*–with its blind, limited understanding–is the forbidden tree that we are not to eat from. We cannot trust our heart; we have to trust God. Who are we to think that we (the created) know better than the Creator?
Let’s see what God reveals to us about the heart in His Word:
*Jeremiah 17:9 “The heart is deceitful above all things, and it is exceedingly perverse and corrupt and severely, mortally sick! Who can know it [perceive, understand, be acquainted with his own heart and mind]?”
*Proverbs 28:26 “He who leans on, trusts in, and is confident of his own mind and heart is a [self-confident] fool, but he who walks in skillful and godly Wisdom shall be delivered.”
*Proverbs 4:23 “Keep and guard your heart with all vigilance and above all that you guard, for out of it flow the springs of life.”
*Proverbs 3:5-6 “Lean on, trust in, and be confident in the Lord with all your heart and mind and do not rely on your own insight or understanding.
In all your ways know, recognize, and acknowledge Him, and He will direct and make straight and plain your paths.”
*Proverbs 4:20-22 “My son, attend to my words; consent and submit to my sayings. Let them not depart from your sight; keep them in the center of your heart. For they are life to those who find them, healing and health to all their flesh.”
*Psalm 73:26 “My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the Rock and firm Strength of my heart and my Portion forever.”

Its important to note that as we savor the deceptive, fleeting pleasure that sin imparts, it begins to dissolve us on the inside. In a spiritual sense, the sin begins to digest us and strip us of time and our love. When one begins to suffer the consequences, such as lack of trust from his/her spouse and chaos within their marriage, they must realize that they don’t know better than God and begin to turn back to Him. We are not to live a life in submission to the desires within our fleshy, carnal heart. We are to live our lives in submission to God by obeying His commands and learning His ways.
When Adam and Eve made the choice to disobey God, they were not allowed to remain under God’s protective covering. They were forced to leave the garden and never allowed to return. When a wife chooses to sin by rebelling against her husband’s sovereign leadership by refusing to submit to him, she is walking out from under God’s covering. Fortunately, thanks to Jesus Christ*, we can make a choice to regain His covering by:
~Confessing our sins to Him
~Repenting (turning completely away from sin in thoughts, words, and conduct)
~Making choices that honor God and our spouse
Thanks to Christ, we are mercifully forgiven! We will make mistakes and fall short; but God allows us to return to Him. God is good!!!
*Romans 6:23 “For the wages which sin pays is death, but the [bountiful] free gift of God is eternal life through (in union with) Jesus Christ our Lord.”
*1 Peter 2:24 ” He personally bore our sins in His [own] body on the tree [as on an altar and offered Himself on it], that we might die (cease to exist) to sin and live to righteousness. By His wounds you have been healed.”
*1 Corinthians 10:13 “For no temptation (no trial regarded as enticing to sin), [no matter how it comes or where it leads] has overtaken you and laid hold on you that is not common to man [that is, no temptation or trial has come to you that is beyond human resistance and that is not adjusted and adapted and belonging to human experience, and such as man can bear]. But God is faithful [to His Word and to His compassionate nature], and He [can be trusted] not to let you be tempted and tried and assayed beyond your ability and strength of resistance and power to endure, but with the temptation He will [always] also provide the way out (the means of escape to a landing place), that you may be capable and strong and powerful to bear up under it patiently.”

Therefore, let us look to The Lord and follow His ways that He may heal us. Let us repent of our sins! May our hearts be in right standing with God so that we exude the “sweet fragrance of Christ [which exhales] unto God, [discernible alike] among those who are being saved” as described in 2 Corinthians 2:15. Let us turn from the eating the fruit of sin that the enemy tries to harvest by planting seeds of sinful desires within our hearts. Let us not blindly follow our heart but instead follow the Word of God. For the Lord is the ONLY fruit that can satisfy our insatiable hearts and spirits!!!
“O taste and see that the Lord [our God] is good! Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) is the man who trusts and takes refuge in Him.” (Psalm34:8).
Thank You Jesus!!! Hallelujah 🙂

*Hosea 14:4-8 “I will heal their faithlessness; I will love them freely, for My anger is turned away from [Israel]. I will be like the dew and the night mist to Israel; he shall grow and blossom like the lily and cast forth his roots like [the sturdy evergreens of] Lebanon. His suckers and shoots shall spread, and his beauty shall be like the olive tree and his fragrance like [the cedars and aromatic shrubs of] Lebanon. They that dwell under his shade shall return; they shall revive like the grain and blossom like the vine; the scent of it shall be like the wine of Lebanon. Ephraim shall say, What have I to do any more with idols? I have answered [him] and will regard and watch over him; I am like a green fir or cypress tree; with Me is the fruit found [which is to nourish you].”

~Cassandra Salamone

“The Forbidden Fruit Within”

In the Garden of Eden, Satan lured Eve from a path characterized by her perfected submission to God and Adam,her husband, to a twisted maze of destruction and deceit. The wily serpent tricked her with the promise that she would attain understanding like God–that she would be like God–if she ate a piece of fruit from the forbidden tree of knowledge. In that moment when she considered the serpent’s offer, Eve revealed her doubt and trust in God’s sovereignty; and she also revealed that what she was contemplating was actually rebellion. She did not want to submit and trust in the order and covering her husband Adam provided her by God’s abundant provision. She revealed a discontented heart. They lived in paradise, for goodness sakes; but it was not good enough for Eve. Satan held out a lie in the form of a fruit; and she consumed it. She devoured the devil’s lie and dressed up her covetous heart’s desires by persuading Adam that the fruit was good for them to eat after all–despite God’s command that they should NOT eat fruit from that particular tree!
*Genesis 3:1-6 ” Now the serpent was more subtle and crafty than any living creature of the field which the Lord God had made. And he [Satan] said to the woman, Can it really be that God has said, You shall not eat from every tree of the garden? And the woman said to the serpent, We may eat the fruit from the trees of the garden, Except the fruit from the tree which is in the middle of the garden.

God has said, You shall not eat of it, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.

But the serpent said to the woman, You shall not surely die, For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing the difference between good and evil and blessing and calamity.
And when the woman saw that the tree was good (suitable, pleasant) for food and that it was delightful to look at, and a tree to be desired in order to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate; and she gave some also to her husband, and he ate.”

When we accept the devil’s lie–when we sin–we exchange our protective covering that is provided by God. It’s almost as if we sign an invisible (spiritual) permission slip that allows the enemy to wreak havoc in our lives. By making sinful choices, we suffer the consequences from biting into the lie within our hearts that we know better than God and that, basically, His plans and provisions are inadequate. In our modernized lives, we are not tempted with a simple piece of fruit. Our “fruit” is candied to make the temptation alluring with its illusion that it will provide something better in our lives. That it will be a source of joy and success. The lie promises to give us a better life–a better husband. A better wife. As soon as we digest the lie and commit sin such as adultery, we give the enemy permission to make us suffer the consequences. That lie is the fruit we imbibe, but we are the ones who allow the seeds of temptation to be planted in our hearts in the first place. Our heart*–with its blind, limited understanding–is the forbidden tree that we are not to eat from. We cannot trust our heart; we have to trust God. Who are we to think that we (the created) know better than the Creator?
Let’s see what God reveals to us about the heart in His Word:
*Jeremiah 17:9 “The heart is deceitful above all things, and it is exceedingly perverse and corrupt and severely, mortally sick! Who can know it [perceive, understand, be acquainted with his own heart and mind]?”
*Proverbs 28:26 “He who leans on, trusts in, and is confident of his own mind and heart is a [self-confident] fool, but he who walks in skillful and godly Wisdom shall be delivered.”
*Proverbs 4:23 “Keep and guard your heart with all vigilance and above all that you guard, for out of it flow the springs of life.”
*Proverbs 3:5-6 “Lean on, trust in, and be confident in the Lord with all your heart and mind and do not rely on your own insight or understanding.
In all your ways know, recognize, and acknowledge Him, and He will direct and make straight and plain your paths.”
*Proverbs 4:20-22 “My son, attend to my words; consent and submit to my sayings. Let them not depart from your sight; keep them in the center of your heart. For they are life to those who find them, healing and health to all their flesh.”
*Psalm 73:26 “My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the Rock and firm Strength of my heart and my Portion forever.”

Its important to note that as we savor the deceptive, fleeting pleasure that sin imparts, it begins to dissolve us on the inside. In a spiritual sense, the sin begins to digest us and strip us of time and our love. When one begins to suffer the consequences, such as lack of trust from his/her spouse and chaos within their marriage, they must realize that they don’t know better than God and begin to turn back to Him. We are not to live a life in submission to the desires within our fleshy, carnal heart. We are to live our lives in submission to God by obeying His commands and learning His ways.
When Adam and Eve made the choice to disobey God, they were not allowed to remain under God’s protective covering. They were forced to leave the garden and never allowed to return. When a wife chooses to sin by rebelling against her husband’s sovereign leadership by refusing to submit to him, she is walking out from under God’s covering. Fortunately, thanks to Jesus Christ*, we can make a choice to regain His covering by:
~Confessing our sins to Him
~Repenting (turning completely away from sin in thoughts, words, and conduct)
~Making choices that honor God and our spouse
Thanks to Christ, we are mercifully forgiven! We will make mistakes and fall short; but God allows us to return to Him. God is good!!!
*Romans 6:23 “For the wages which sin pays is death, but the [bountiful] free gift of God is eternal life through (in union with) Jesus Christ our Lord.”
*1 Peter 2:24 ” He personally bore our sins in His [own] body on the tree [as on an altar and offered Himself on it], that we might die (cease to exist) to sin and live to righteousness. By His wounds you have been healed.”
*1 Corinthians 10:13 “For no temptation (no trial regarded as enticing to sin), [no matter how it comes or where it leads] has overtaken you and laid hold on you that is not common to man [that is, no temptation or trial has come to you that is beyond human resistance and that is not adjusted and adapted and belonging to human experience, and such as man can bear]. But God is faithful [to His Word and to His compassionate nature], and He [can be trusted] not to let you be tempted and tried and assayed beyond your ability and strength of resistance and power to endure, but with the temptation He will [always] also provide the way out (the means of escape to a landing place), that you may be capable and strong and powerful to bear up under it patiently.”

Therefore, let us look to The Lord and follow His ways that He may heal us. Let us repent of our sins! May our hearts be in right standing with God so that we exude the “sweet fragrance of Christ [which exhales] unto God, [discernible alike] among those who are being saved” as described in 2 Corinthians 2:15. Let us turn from the eating the fruit of sin that the enemy tries to harvest by planting seeds of sinful desires within our hearts. Let us not blindly follow our heart but instead follow the Word of God. For the Lord is the ONLY fruit that can satisfy our insatiable hearts and spirits!!!
“O taste and see that the Lord [our God] is good! Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) is the man who trusts and takes refuge in Him.” (Psalm34:8).
Thank You Jesus!!! Hallelujah 🙂

*Hosea 14:4-8 “I will heal their faithlessness; I will love them freely, for My anger is turned away from [Israel]. I will be like the dew and the night mist to Israel; he shall grow and blossom like the lily and cast forth his roots like [the sturdy evergreens of] Lebanon. His suckers and shoots shall spread, and his beauty shall be like the olive tree and his fragrance like [the cedars and aromatic shrubs of] Lebanon. They that dwell under his shade shall return; they shall revive like the grain and blossom like the vine; the scent of it shall be like the wine of Lebanon. Ephraim shall say, What have I to do any more with idols? I have answered [him] and will regard and watch over him; I am like a green fir or cypress tree; with Me is the fruit found [which is to nourish you].”

~Cassandra Salamone