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A familiar struggle among families of pastors is feeling like their lives are lived in a fish bowl. They fear the church and community scrutinizes every move they make. They wonder whether they can safely swim within this poisonous habitat. What makes this an unhealthy environment?
A similar occurrence in all aquariums is the growing of algae. Algae develops due to the presence of sun and nutrients (nitrates). The increase of nitrates causes the water to become toxic to the fish. Fresh water is the cure.
The toxins had reached dangerous levels within our fish bowl. With an excess of seventy resumes mailed over a six month period, we desperately begged the Lord to transfer our family to a new tank. Much to our dismay we were lifted by the nets and seriously considered by a number of churches only to be dumped back into our present living conditions. It became apparent that a new domain was not on our horizon. How were we to continue and survive where we existed now?
We arrived at the pastor/wife conference seeking answers. We gathered with seven other couples from all over the country, discovering other fish just as "icky" as us. We began our exploration with these school mates for a new perspective.
Amid our free times, we learned about each others guppies. During our daily feedings, we rose to the surface and released our burdens. In our group times we sang praises, lifted one another up in prayer, and heard the Word of God taught to us.
One particular night we sat under a prayer shawl and had encouraging words spoken to us. Each of these marina friends prayed over us and then anointed us with oil. A healing generated hope within us, and our spirits were lifted.
Another evening we watched a short film revealing how difficult it was for the butterfly to emerge from a cocoon. We learned that if anything interferred and shorten the process, the butterfly would be killed. We understood that if we attempted to escape the vessel in which we dwelt, we would disrupted the Lord's plan.
As we swam beside one another that week, it became apparent to all of us that we had indeed received fresh water. We found our gills soothed with clean air again. The nitrates had lost their toxic effects and we no longer floundered in fears and doubts. We had been renewed and refreshed. We could breath and swim again.
The opinions expressed by authors may not necessarily reflect the opinion of FaithWriters.com.
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