Go Fish Ministries, Inc. News Letter Oct. 1, 2008

Go Fish Ministries, Inc. News Letter Oct. 1, 2008


Jesus said: Follow me and I will make you fishers for the souls of others. Matthew 4:19

Sis. Kimberly Hartfield, B.S. Christian Community Consultant/Spiritual Peer Counselor Contact: gofishbooks@gmail.com



Counselors Corner

What I am Angry About and What Would Jesus Get Angry About?

©2008 Kimberly Hartfield

Anger is something I have been accused of lately, so I thought about some of the things that have made me angry over the years, and what kinds of things Jesus might be angry about as well. But let me tell you, there is a very thin line between righteous anger and some unrighteous behavior that follows with all of us that are clearly human. Those of us who consider ourselves less than perfect can admit that we are angry people when someone steps across our God-given personal boundaries, but that does not excuse ungodly behavior, and does not forgo our need for personal responsibility and repentance when necessary. Jesus clearly told us, be angry, and sin not. But how do we actually do that? I’m still learning that one myself and pray that by God’s grace, I will someday learn how to be angry, but not sin. That being said, here are some of the things that I get angry about and that I believe Jesus would be angry about as well.

I get angry when I hear about children being beaten, microwaved, drowned in bathtubs, and thrown into rivers to drown. I get angry when little girls and boys are raped and molested by repeat pedophiles, who have been caught and let loose to do it again and again. I get angry when children have been ridiculed and called ugly names by parents or other important people in their lives. (I’ve been guilty of this one on a few occasions my self, Lord, please forgive me.)

I get angry when women, young and old alike are raped and even when some men are raped. I get angry when women are beaten into submission, spit on, and held at gunpoint by ungodly husbands. I get angry when women are shamefully treated and ridiculed, (for things like wanting to go to church and bring their children with them) and called everything but a child of God by their husbands (Christian or not).

I get angry when babies are aborted, and when some, who are born alive, are not given nutrition, hydration, and medical care and left to die in a garbage pail. I get angry when people in high positions, like presidential candidate, Obama, supports these types of measures. I get angry when our elderly people, who are about to die, are hurriedly finished off in the name of “comfort measures” and good Christians stand by and watch. (Now I differentiate between “extreme measures” and basic nutrition and hydration, which I believe is our Christian duty to give.)

I get angry when there is blatant segregation and prejudice still in our churches in this generation and when I try to help the next generation avoid these same mistakes in a class discussion, I get fired from a Christian School. (No freedom of speech here!) Please read my article Multiculturalism, Racism, and Prejudice in the Churches. I get angry when public school teachers are caught sleeping with their students and I get blackballed from taking education classes for bringing in a relevant newspaper article to help all the new teachers going into the field avoid this behavior. (No freedom of speech here either!)

I get angry when young girls get pregnant out of wedlock, and go to their parents for help and forgiveness and they get condemnation instead of loving support, and told to get an abortion to save face for their parents. I get angry when babies are born with all kinds of mental and health problems due to their mothers being on crack cocaine and other popular drugs. I get angry when people drive drunk and others pay for their sins with heartache for the rest of their lives or even death. I get angry when evil people sell these drugs and alcohol to our children. I get angry when one person wins a ton of money from a casino and many others had to loose their homes, their livelihoods, and sometimes even their families to make that happen. I get angry when people in high political positions get these kinds of things legalized and won’t let the people vote on these important issues.

I get angry when supposedly Christian people lie about others to cover up their own greed and hypocrisy, like when they would put a single mother with two children out on the street for a few extra dollars of inheritance money, when they themselves already have a nice home and all they could ever need. I get angry when I am falsely accused of stealing from churches, when I only applied for a Katrina Recovery program with the Salvation Army, like many other people did, who were affected by Katrina. The Salvation Army could have just as easily turned down the application as granted it, but God chose for us to be blessed, and others are angry about that, and so accuse me of stealing from churches. (By the way, if you are able, please support the Salvation Army with donations of used or new items for their store or with money, as I do and have from time to time.) I have never taken any money from a church, though I have accepted a few personal gifts from individuals who were led to do so of their own accord, like when a lady overheard my youngest son, Joey, ask to go to McDonald’s after church and I told him we couldn’t because I had just given my last two dollars in the offering plate and she gave us $20 and told me to take my children to McDonald’s. (That was such a blessing!) Funny how that worked, I gave $2 and God gave $20. You can’t ever out give God and you always reap more than you sow!

I get angry when others who have good jobs, nice homes and cars, and land and wealth don’t tithe their full 10% to God and so steal from God. I get angry when we feel we must depend on the government to do the churches job of feeding and helping the poor, because of this. I get angry when I always do my best to tithe what little bit I have, (even my college refunds, which are loans that I will have to pay back) so as not to steal from God, and get accused of stealing from God. But in all honesty, I have missed a few tithes, here and there, so I guess that accusation may be true. It’s hard sometimes to tithe that $10 from the $100 dollar puppy sale, when there’s been little other income for quite a while, and not much food in the cabinet to feed your children. But I am trying to remedy this, and have tried to be more faithful as of late, and I have to say that God has not ever let us go hungry.

Jesus was angry when turning over the money changers’ tables in the temple because they were doing business in the house of God, and I’m sure, was accused by the Pharisees of being an angry person. Anger is a legitimate emotion, and there are times and places when we, as Christians, should get angry. We should get angry at the things Jesus would be angry at. God’s Word says that we should hate what is evil. But we need to be careful of crossing that line between legitimate anger and anger that is out of control and truly harmful to others. Others are so angry at me right now that they are willing to put my children and me out of our home to satisfy their vengeful and greedy hearts. I have found that the best way to defeat anger is to pray for those who treat you shamefully and with good clear boundaries, stay away from the unrepentant, who are actively trying to bring you harm. This is not to say we can’t reach out to sinners who are yet to be repentant, but to stay away from only those who actively oppose you. In other words, don’t cast your valuable pearls to swine and dogs. (Please read my review of Dr. Henry Cloud and Dr. John Townsend’s book, When to Say Yes and When to Say No!) So even anger has its place, and God’s anger will eventually turn to wrath on the unrepentant, when they are judged on the last Day. The only difference between the repentant sinner and the unrepentant sinner is that God send’s one to Heaven and the other to Hell. So if you’re angry like me, be angry and try to sin not! And believe that when we do sin, we have an advocate in Heaven with our Creator, that stands up and says, “This one is covered by the forgiveness My blood brings to the repentant.” May God have mercy on us all! God Bless and Go Fish 4 Jesus!





Isaiah 30:1, 8-11

Woe to the obstinate children, declares the Lord, to those who carry out plans that are not mine, forming an alliance, but not by my Spirit, heaping sin upon sin…Go now, write it down for them, inscribe it on a book, that for the days to come it may be an everlasting witness. These are rebellious people, deceitful children, children unwilling to listen to the Lord’s instruction. They say to the seers, “See no more visions!” and to the prophets, “Give us no more visions of what is right!” Tell us pleasant things, prophesy illusions. Leave this way, get off the path and stop confronting us with the Holy One of Israel.



Isaiah 32:6-8

Vile people speak evil things and their hearts work wickedness to practice hypocrisy and to speak error against the Lord, to make empty the soul of the hungry, and to cause the drink of the thirsty to fail. The schemes of these schemers are evil, they devise wicked plans to destroy the poor with their lying words, even when the needy speaks what is right! But the righteous ones devise good things and by their righteousness they will stand.



Excerpts from Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians





Immorality Destroys the Church

5[1-5] It’s commonly told that there’s sexual sin among you, and such sexual sin as isn’t so much as named among the other peoples, that one would have the spouse of one of their parents. And you’re prideful, instead of crying over this, that the one who has done this might be taken away from among you. The truth is, being absent in body, but present in spirit, I have judged already, as though I were present, about those who have done this. In the Name of our Christ, Yeshua, when you’re gathered together, and my spirit, with the power of our Christ, Yeshua, let Satan have such as this for the ruin of the body, so that the spirit might be saved in the day of Christ Yeshua.

[6-8] Your bragging isn’t good. Don’t you know that just a little yeast leavens the whole lump of dough? So put out the ones who remain in their worldly ways, so that you can become a new lump of dough, as if you’re unleavened. Even Christ, our Passover, is sacrificed for us: So let’s keep the celebration, not with the leaven of our old ways, or with the leaven of hatred and evil; but with the unleavened bread of honesty and truth.



Immorality is to be Judged by the Church and Separated from the Assembly

[9-13] I wrote to you before in a letter not to keep company with the sexually immoral: Yet you can’t stay away from the sexually immoral of this world totally, or with the selfish, or cheats, or with those who worship falsely, because then you would need to completely leave the world. But I’ve written to you not to keep company with anyone called a Christian, who is a sexually immoral person, or is selfish, or worships other faiths, or is abusive, or a drunk, or a cheat; so don’t to keep company with these kinds of people. I’ve no business judging those that aren’t in the faith. I only judge those who are thought of as Christians. But God judges those who aren’t in the faith. So separate those evil people from among you.



Christians Taking Legal Actions Against Christians

6[1-11] If you have something against another, dare you take legal action in the worldly courts, instead of bringing it before the church? Don’t you know that the Christians will judge the world? And if the world will be judged by you, aren’t you worthy to judge things like this? Don’t you know that we will judge angels? How much more then, should we judge things that concern this life? [4] If then you make judgments of things concerning this life, set them to judge who are least esteemed in the church. I speak to your shame. Is it so, that there isn’t a wise person among you? No, not even one, who will be able to judge between one another? But one takes legal action against another, and that to the courts of unbelievers! So there’s quite a fault among you, because you take legal action against one another. Why don’t you instead take wrong? Why don’t you instead let yourselves to be taken advantage of? But no, you do wrong, and take advantage of one another. Don’t you know that the ungodly won’t inherit the realm of God? Don’t be misled: Neither the sexually immoral, nor those who worship falsely, nor those who are sexually unfaithful, nor cross-dressers, nor those who are homosexual, nor thieves, nor selfish, nor drunks, nor haters, nor cheats, will inherit the realm of God. And some of you were like these: but now you’re made clean, but now you’re set apart, but now you’re made right in the Name of Yeshua, the Christ and by the Spirit of our God.



Give God Body and Spirit

[12-20] All things are legal to me, but everything isn’t good for me: everything is legal for me, but I won’t be controlled by anything. Food is for the body, and the body needs food: but God will put an end to both. Now the body isn’t for sexual sin, but for God; and the body needs God. And God, who has brought Christ back to life, will also bring us back to life with great power. Don’t you know that your bodies are the members of Christ’s body? Should I then take the members of Christ, and make them the members of a sexually immoral person? God forbid! Don’t you know that the one who is joined to an sexually immoral person is one body? The Christ said, when two are joined, they will become as one body. But whoever is joined to God is one spirit. So run from sexual sin! Every sin that someone does is outside the body; but whoever takes part in sexual sin sins against their own body. Don’t you know that your body is the place of worship of the Holy Spirit which is in you, which you have from God? You aren’t even your own, because you were bought for a price: so give God your body, and your spirit, which are both God's.



On Marriage

7[1-7] Now about the things in which you wrote to me: It’s good for someone not to be sexually active. But even so, to avoid sexual sin, let every man have his own wife, and let every woman have her own husband. Let the husband give to the wife what is rightfully due her: and the same also the wife to the husband. The wife doesn’t have complete control of her own body, but the husband shares it: and the same also the husband doesn’t have complete control of his own body, but the wife shares it. So don’t cheat one another out of affection, unless it be with agreement for a specific time, so that you can willingly going without and pray; then come together again, so that Satan doesn’t tempt you for your lack of faithfulness. I give you permission for this, but I don’t command it. I wish that everyone were just like I am. But everyone has their own gift of God, one person has one gift, and someone else has another gift.



Live as You are Called

[8-24] So I say to the unmarried, the widows, and the widowers, it’s good for them if they can live without being sexually active just as I do. But if they can’t control themselves, let them marry again because it’s better to marry than to be continually be tempted with sexual immorality. And I say to the married, still not I, but God, the wife shouldn’t leave her husband: But if she must leave, let her stay separated, or make up with her own husband: and the husband shouldn’t divorce his wife. But to the rest, and this is what I think, but it’s not God’s command: If any Christian man has a wife that doesn’t believe, and she is pleased to live with him, he shouldn’t divorce her. And the Christian woman has a husband that doesn’t believe, and that is pleased to live with her, let her not leave him. Because the unbelieving husband is set apart by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is set apart by the husband: or else your children would be ungodly; but now they’re blessed. But if the unbeliever leaves, let them leave. A Christian brother or sister isn’t trapped in such cases: but God has called us to be in peace. And How do you know, wife, whether you’ll save your husband? Or how do you know, husband , whether you’ll save your wife? But use the gifts that God has given to each one, and stay just as you were called by God. And I ordain this in all the churches. If someone is called in a higher social standing, don’t let them seek lower social standing. If someone is called in a lower social standing, then don’t let them seek a higher social standing. What situation you are in is unimportant, but the keeping of the Words of God is what is truly important. Let everyone live the same way they were called. Are you called being a hired worker? Don’t worry about it: but if you can become free to do your own business, then take the chance to do that instead. Because whoever is called in God, being a worker, is free in God: and in the same way also, whoever is called, being free, is Christ's worker. You’re bought with a price; so don’t work for what ungodly people want. Christians, let everyone else live in God just as they were called.



On the Unmarried and the Widows

[25-40] Now about those who have never been sexually active, I have no Word of God: but still I give my judgment, as one that has found the mercy of God to be faithful. I suppose that this is good for the present problem, I say that it’s good for someone to be one who has never been sexually active. Are you married? Don’t look to be separated. Are you separated from a spouse? Don’t look for a spouse. But if you do marry, you haven’t sinned; and if those who have never been sexually active get married, they haven’t sinned. Even so they’ll have trouble in the physical realm: but I would like to spare them that. But I say this, Christians, the time left is short: so those who have spouses should be as though they didn’t have one; And those who cry, as though they didn’t cry; and those who celebrate, as though they didn’t celebrate; and those who buy, as though they didn’t have anything; And those who use this world, as not abusing it, because the way of this world is coming to an end. But I wouldn’t have you worry. Whoever is unmarried cares for the things that concern God, and how they can please God: But whoever is married cares for the things that are of the world, and how they can please their spouses. There’s difference also between a spouse and one who has never been sexually active. The unmarried cares for the things of God, so that they can be holy both in body and in spirit: but whoever is married cares for the things of the world, how they can please their spouses. And this I speak for your own good; not that I want to limit you, but for what is acceptable, and so that you can serve God without being pulled in two directions at once. But if anyone thinks that they behaved unwisely toward their promised one, if their youth is passing them by, and their needs demand it, then let them do whatever they have vowed in their heart. But if they can keep the one who has never been sexually active pure, they do well. So then whoever gives themselves in marriage does well; but whoever doesn’t give themselves in marriage does better. A spouse is bound by law as long as the other spouse lives; but if one spouse dies, the other is free to be married to whoever they want; as long as they are both Christians. But they’ll be happier if they live as I have said: and I think that I do have the Spirit of God.





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Notes and Prayer Requests

• My husband, Rocky, (we are separated) has had two major surgeries recently and is recuperating. I have been trying to help him some since he got home, but its going to be a long road before he’s out of the woods. Please pray for the healing of his body and spirit.

• (Rose) My daughter was recently in a car accident and has a sprained neck. My daughters’ husband, David, just lost his great grandfather. Please remember them and David’s family in your prayers as well.

• My daughter, Sunny, is embarking on a new job at North Carolina Central University Library, and will be reentering Meredith College in January. Please pray for her continued success.

• Rock has decided he wants to go back to school and get in a nursing program in the next year or so. Please pray for His perseverance and success.

• Tommy is doing great in Football, so pray for his continued health, as he had quite a few health issues last year and didn’t get much playing time.

• Jonnie is doing great in school and band, and doing all he can to help at home. Please pray for his patience and good will.

• Merry is in show choir and lovin’ it. Please pray for her to stay humble! (haha)

• Selah and Joey are doing great in their homeschooling work and are both very smart. Please pray for my patience with them.

• I am back in school at William Carey in my research class. I’ll be doing my internship in the winter trimester and then taking my last two classes in the spring, God Willing! Please remember me as I finish up this last year in my program. Thanks be to God Almighty!!!!!!!!!!!!

• If anyone has Christian based writings they’d like to contribute to this newsletter, you may email it to me to review and publish in upcoming Newsletters.