Who Told You the Glass Was Still There?

This Fourth of July, we're celebrating more than political freedom-we're talking about the freedom Jesus died to give us.

What invisible walls are still shaping your life? Fear, shame, rejection, anxiety, or the belief that your past defines your future?

In this episode, Sherry explores the oldest battle in history-the battle between truth and deception-and how the lies we've believed can quietly become the language we live by. Through Scripture and powerful illustrations, you'll discover how to renew your mind, rewrite the story you've been telling yourself, and embrace the freedom Christ has already won for you.

One heartbreaking chapter doesn't get to become the title of your whole story.

Pull up a chair, grab your coffee, and join us at the coffee table as we ask one life-changing question:

Who told you the glass was still there?

📞 24-Hour Prayer Line: 855-822-PRAY (7729)
🌐 More resources: shepherdsvillage.com

Transcript

Welcome And The Freedom We Crave

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Welcome to It's a Single Mom Thing. The show for Single Moms by Single Moms. This is Sherry your host, and I am happy you are here today. It's a single mom thing, and not the single thing that stops you.

SPEAKER_01 0:15

So hey girl, hey. Grab yourself a cup of coffee, or maybe this weekend is a glass of some sweet tea. And I want you to do me a solid and pull up a chair and join me at the coffee table because I am so glad that you are here. So this weekend, for those of us living here in the United States, we celebrate 250 years as a free nation, which is an amazing milestone. There will be fireworks, flags waving in the breeze, backyard barbecues, and families gathering to celebrate the blessing of freedom. And listen, if you're listening from somewhere else in the world, I'm so glad you're here too. Because while this weekend celebrates America's independence, today's conversation isn't really about one country's freedom. It's about a freedom every one of us longs for. So can I ask you something? When was the last time you felt truly free? Now, not the bills are finally paid woo-hoo free. Not the kids are finally asleep free. Not the oh, I finally took me a vacation free. I mean soul free. The kind of freedom where fear doesn't make your decisions, where shame doesn't keep introducing itself, where your passing, I love this one, doesn't have permission to tell you who you are, and where tomorrow isn't held hostage by yesterday. Because here's what your girl Sherry has realized. Oh, we can live in a free nation and attend church every Sunday, love Jesus with all our hearts and some sweet tea, and still live in prison by thoughts he never intended us to carry. Who am I talking to right now? So, you know, I got another question for you. And it goes like this Who told you the glass was still there? Now I know you're like, uh what, Sherry? That's a little strange question. And listen, it's a question that I have been asked all week. So stay with me.

The Barracuda And Invisible Walls

SPEAKER_01 2:26

See, because I heard this story about a barracuda that I couldn't wait to share with you. So it goes like this. This barracuda, listen, was placed in a tank with some smaller fish. And what do we know about barracuda? There's some nasty fish, they're ugly. And what do they do? They like to eat fish. And so what did it do when it got in the tank? It chased them, it held them hostage, and then it quickly ate them all. But check it. The next time, a clear glass divider was placed between the barracuda and the fish. And again, and again, and again, the barracuda lunged toward them, only to crash into the invisible barrier. Eventually, it stopped trying. After enough failed attempts, it learned oh there was a limit. Now finally, the glass divider was removed, and the fish swam freely about, the wall was gone, but the Barracuda never crossed the line again. You see, the glass wasn't around it anymore. However, the glass had become part of how it thought. Gotcha right now. Think about that. Now listen, as I sat with that story this week, I could not stop asking myself, well, how many of us are living exactly like that? Not because we're trapped, but because somewhere along the way we became convinced that we were. Girlfriend, check it. Listen, I don't think the enemy's greatest weapon is temptation anymore. I think honestly, it's deception. Because listen, if he can convince you, if he can convince me to believe something that isn't true, well, then we all eventually start living like it is. I know I'm talking to someone. This isn't just for me. And here's the part that really stopped me this week. The enemy puts the glass there and then quietly steps back. Because once we believe the lie, we listen, we begin enforcing the prison ourselves. He doesn't have to keep reminding us, oh, we're not enough. He we remind ourselves. He doesn't have to keep telling us, well, never change. We say it before anyone else can. He doesn't have to convince us to stop dreaming. We've already decided it's safer not to try. Girl, the battle for your freedom didn't begin 250 years ago. It didn't even begin 2,000 years ago. Listen, it let me say this again, it's been raging since the Garden of Eden. Long before there were nations long, before there were borders long, before there were fireworks celebrating freedom. There was a serpent planting a lie. And humanity has been wrestling with that same battle ever since. That's why your girl Sherry believes the greatest war isn't happening between countries. Oh no, it's happening between truth and deception, between what God says and what we've come to believe instead. So last week there wasn't a podcast. Not because I didn't have anything to say, but because I needed to sit at the coffee table with Jesus before I sat down at this one with you. You see, life has a way of bringing us chapters we never expected. Chapters that hurt, chapters we can't explain, chapters we certainly

Deception And Self-Built Prisons

SPEAKER_01 6:12

wouldn't have chosen. And I've been reminded again that the battle isn't always what happened. The battle is what we're tempted to believe because it happened. So today we are going to identify the invisible glass. We're going to ask who put it there. We're going to compare what the world has programmed us to believe with what God says is actually true. Because Jesus didn't just come to forgive your sin, He came to set you free, free from shame, free from fear, free from condemnation, free from the lies that keep you swimming in circles around the walls. He already tore down. So, girlfriend, do me this favor and take a sip of your coffee or sweet tea, whatever you choose. I want you to lean in and let's talk about some freedom. The freedom nobody sees. So I got another question for you. Okay, you ready? When was the last time you stopped to think about the difference? Okay, let's think about this between being free and living free. Because those aren't always the same thing. You know, okay, so America declared its independence 250 years ago. Israel walked through the Red Sea as free people. Jesus declared freedom for every person who would put their faith in him over 2,000 years ago. Yet people still live like slaves. Why? Why do we do that? Because freedom isn't lost when the chains go on. Freedom is lost when the lie goes unchallenged. Think about it. Let's think about Adam and Eve for a second here, okay? The serpent didn't begin by offering them fruit. He began with a question. Did God really say blah blah blah? And then came another one. You will surely not die. You see, the first battle wasn't over behavior, my friends, it was over belief. Because once the lie was believed, everything else followed. Shame, fear, hiding, blame. The enemy only had to plant the lie. Adam and Eve did the rest. So let's think about Israel. Okay, so God, what do we know? God broke every chain. I mean, he opened the Red Sea, destroyed Pharaoh's army. I mean, the glass was gone. But Egypt wasn't. Not in their minds. You see, when life became difficult in the wilderness, what did they want to do? Oh, they wanted to go back, go back to slavery. Not because they weren't free, but because slavery had become familiar. Ladies, sometimes I think we choose familiar bondage over unfamiliar freedom. And why do we do that? Well, I tend to think because freedom requires us to believe God more than our past. And that's where many of us, including your girl Sherry, can get stuck. We start believing things God never said. God never said, I'm just bad with money. I'll never find a healthy relationship. Oh, my past is too messy. I'm a failure. My children will always pay for my mistakes. I've missed my opportunity. Girl, listen, those aren't just discouraging thoughts.

Free Versus Living Free

SPEAKER_01 10:00

Those are some invisible walls. And the longer we rehearse them, the more they sound like our own voice. And can I tell you something that's been changing the way I think? Whenever one of those thoughts come to my mind, and they come often, they are frequent flyers. I've started asking one simple question. Well, who told me that? Did Jesus or did the pain? Did Scripture or did the shame? Did the Holy Spirit or did fear? Because I'm pretty sure Jesus said, You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. So notice. And we need to notice this. Listen, pull in, lean in, grab that chair, come in closer. Listen, as I talk to you, girlfriend to girlfriend, listen. Truth comes first, freedom follows. So today maybe isn't about us trying harder because I know we like to try, try, try, try, try. But maybe it's about believing differently. Because the enemy, girl, listen, he doesn't need to steal your future if he can convince you to rename your story. And maybe that's exactly what's been trying, he's been trying to do all along. When the lie becomes your language. So listen, it doesn't matter where you're listening from today, okay? You may be listening from the United States, Canada, Australia, South Africa, the Philippines, or somewhere else in the world. You may speak English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Swahili, or Tag a log. I don't even know. I'm sorry if I tore that up. Or another language entirely. But you know what? I've discovered something. Lies? Well, they sound remarkably remarkably, that's a hard word for me to get out, similar in every language. I'm not enough. I'll never change. I'm too broken. I'm too far gone. Nobody can love me. I'll always struggle. This is just who I am. Yeah, I get it. The words may sound different, but listen, the message is always the same. Because lies don't belong to a country, they belong to the same enemy. And here's the beautiful part because there is beauty in all of this. Truth doesn't need a passport. Jesus speaks every language. Hope speaks every language. Grace speaks every language. Freedom speaks every language. And his truth has been setting captives free in every nation for more than 2,000 years. So, girl, no matter where you're born or what language you grew up speaking, every one of us has learned a

Replacing Lies With Truth

SPEAKER_01 12:50

language Jesus never taught us. The language of fear, the language of shame, the language of comparison, the language of scarcity, the language of rejection, the language of not enough. And if we're here, and if we hear that language long enough, eventually the lie becomes our language. We stop saying, I believed a lie. We start saying, This is just who I am. Well, I got me another question for you. How often do you hear yourself saying things like, I'm just bad with money? I'm always, I've always been anxious, or I'm terrible at relationships. I'll probably mess this up. I'm just an emotional person. I've never been confident. I'm stupid. Ladies, listen, those aren't just sentences, they're a language. And every language teaches us how to interpret the world. The language of fear, for example, interprets every opportunity as something to avoid. The language of shame, well, it has us interpret every mistake as an identity. The language of scarcity interprets every blessing as temporary. And the language of rejection interprets every silence as abandonment. How about the language of comparison? Will that interpret someone else's success as your failure? Do you see what happens? You see, the enemy puts the glass there and then he quietly steps back. Because once we become fluent in the lie, we begin speaking it to ourselves. We don't need anyone else to tell us we're not enough. We say it. We don't need anyone else to tell us we'll fail. We've already decided we will. We don't need anyone to tell us to stop dreaming. We convinced ourselves it's safer not to. And listen, the most dangerous voice you'll ever hear isn't always the enemy's. We sure do. Our children are always listening, not to just what we say, but to what we believe. If they constantly hear we can't afford anything, I've said that one a lot, they may begin believing lack is their identity. And that is a dang lie straight from hell. And if they hear I am so stupid, I used to say that too, they may begin believing that's how we speak to ourselves when we make a mistake. That's stupid, if you ask me. And if they watch us believe we're unworthy, they may quietly wonder if they're worthy too. That's why this matters. That's why we need to take this seriously. Words matter. This isn't about guilt, it's about legacy. But now here's the hope, because there is hope. Languages can be learned, and languages can be replaced. Listen, in Romans 12, 2, it says, and I quote, do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. I love that word. Renewing. God doesn't say try harder. He says think differently. He doesn't shame us for believing the lie, he lovingly teaches us a new language. The language of truth, the language of grace, the language of hope, the language of identity, the language of freedom. Can I tell you something? God has been teaching me lately. Oh girl. He's been gently interrupting my own thoughts. Just this past week, I caught myself beginning to write an ending that God hasn't written. I caught myself assuming I knew how the story would end. I caught myself standing in front of the piece of glass that maybe wasn't even there anymore. And then in the quiet, I sensed the Lord asking me a question. Sherry, and he calls me my darling daughter. Who told you that? Girlfriend, listen, that question has changed the way I listen to my own thoughts. Take every thought captive, every fearful thought, every hopeless thought, every condemning thought, every limiting thought. I've started asking, who taught me to speak that language? Was it Jesus or was it fear? Was it scripture or was it shame? Was it the Holy Spirit or was it disappointment? Because again, Jesus said, You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. Again, truth comes first, freedom follows. So maybe today isn't about us trying harder, maybe it's about becoming fluent in a different language. The language your father, my father, has been speaking over us all along. When your life speaks the lie. So again, I got another question.

How Beliefs Drive Daily Choices

SPEAKER_01 18:30

Can I ask you this? Something that may feel a little uncomfortable. That is where I have been, is in the uncomfortable. So that's where we're gonna sit for a second. So if someone followed you around for a week, ooh, that's a bit creepy, right? Not listening to your words, but watching your decisions. Ooh, that's interesting. What language would they say you're fluent in? Would they say you speak fear or faith, scarcity or abundance, shame or grace, anxiety or peace? Because here's what I've learned. It's very interesting. We don't always live according to what we say we believe, we live according to what we actually believe. There is a big difference, and there is a big impact. You see, our lives become fluent in whatever language our heart believes most. So let's make let's make this practical, okay? So, for example, if I believe I will never have enough enough, I don't just think it, I make financial decisions from it. Maybe I hold so tightly to every dollar that generosity feels absolutely impossible. Or maybe on the contrary, I spend impulsively because I've convinced myself I'll never get ahead, anyways. Different behaviors, right? Same language. Scarcity. If I believe people always leave, I don't just think I build, I don't just think I build walls, I keep relationships at arm's length, or I become so afraid of losing people that I lose myself trying to keep them. Different behaviors, same language. Here's another one. Fear. If I believe I'm not enough, I don't just think it, I overwork, I overperform, I apologize for everything. I can even compare myself to everyone. I spend my life trying to earn something Jesus already gave me. Again, different behavior, same language, performance. And girlfriend, listen, can we talk about parenting for a minute?

The Language Your Kids Learn

SPEAKER_01 20:53

I'm just saying, because listen, I know so many of you listening are raising children, whether they're toddlers, teenagers, or grown adults like mine. Our children don't just inherit our eye color. Sometimes, listen, this is very important, they inherit our language. Not because we intended it, but because language is caught long before it's taught. If they hear us constantly criticize ourselves, they learn self-criticism. If they watch us live afraid, they learn fear. If they see us believe God only when everything makes sense, well then girlfriend, listen, they may grow up believing faith depends on circumstances. But what if, what if they watch something different? I mean, what if they watched a mom who says, I don't have all the answers, but I know the one who does. What if they watched someone choose hope when disappointment made more sense? I'm walking that out this week. What if they watched someone forgive when bitterness felt justified? What if they watch someone continue to trust God even when the chapter didn't look the way they prayed it would? That's a new language. Can I tell you something that I've been learning?

One Chapter Cannot Rename You

SPEAKER_01 22:14

Sometimes the most powerful thing we can do is to refuse to let one chapter teach us a language Jesus never intended us to speak. Again, this past week I found myself standing in one of those moments. A chapter I never would have chosen, I never saw coming. A chapter that could have easily convinced me to start speaking the language of hopelessness, trust me. To start writing endings God hasn't written, to start believing that one painful chapter somehow became the title of my whole story. But in this sweet Jesus, Amen. Sweet Jesus gently reminded me, Sherry, my darling daughter, that's just a chapter. It's not your cover. Girlfriend, I don't know what chapter you're living right now. Maybe it's divorce, maybe it's grief, maybe it's a financial pressure, maybe it's addiction, a diagnosis, a strange stranged relationship. Maybe it's a prayer that still hasn't been answered. Whatever chapter you're in, can I assure you, do not let it rename your story because the enemy does not need to steal your future. If he can convince you to rename your story, he whispers, This is who you are now. No, Jesus says no, this is where you are right now. Those are two very different things. One is identity, the other is a season. And seasons change, girl. Identity doesn't. One heartbreaking chapter listen doesn't have to get to become the title of your whole story. It may just simply explain where you are. It does not define who you are. Because listen to me, your identity was never written by your worst day. Who needed to hear that today? I'm sure if you're here listening, that message was for you. You see, because it was written by the one who knew you before you were born, who went to a cross for you, who walked out of a tomb for you, who still calls you by name today. Ladies, that's the language of heaven. And that's the language we're learning to speak. So we're gonna learn how to become fluent and a little freedom. So if you've been sitting at the coffee table thinking, okay, Sherry, yes, yes, I hear you, boo. I know I believe some lies, yada, yada, yada. I know I've been speaking a language Jesus never taught me, blah, blah, blah, blah. Well, where do I start? Well, good. I'm glad you asked, and I encourage you. You see, you don't become fluent in a new language overnight. You know that. You learn it. One word, one sentence, one conversation at a time. The same is true with freedom. Freedom isn't usually one giant breakthrough, it's thousands of small moments where you choose God's truth over and over and over and over your old programming. And I can't think of anyone who modeled that better than the Apostle Paul. Come on, Paul. Let's think about it for a second. I mean, because listen, Paul wrote some of the most hope-filled, joy-filled, faith-filled letters in the New Testament while sitting in prison. Physically, he wasn't free. Spiritually, though, no one could chain him. Well, why? Because Rome could control his location, but it couldn't control his language. Listen to po listen to what Paul says in Philippians 4. I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. Did you catch that word? Learned. Contentment wasn't automatic, freedom wasn't automatic. He learned it, just like we're learning it. He learned a language prison couldn't teach him. The language of trust, the language of contentment, the language of hope, joy, worship, surrender. Ladies, heaven doesn't speak shame. Heaven doesn't speak condemnation. Heaven doesn't speak fear. Heaven doesn't even speak not enough. Heaven doesn't speak hopelessness. So why are we becoming fluent in a language our Father doesn't speak? Romans 8 begins with these words. Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ. That means none, not a little, not on your good days, not after you earned it. None. Girlfriend, listen, maybe this week before you believe the first thought that enters your mind, you need to ask yourself some questions. And may I suggest three of them.

Learning A New Language Of Freedom

SPEAKER_01 27:10

Number one, I want you to ask yourself, who told me that? Followed by number two, is that what Jesus says about me? And number three, if I believe God's truth instead, how would I live differently today? Because that's how languages are learned. One conversation at a time, one thought at a time, one choice at a time. So, ladies, I don't know what chapter you're living today, but I do know this. One heartbreaking chapter doesn't get to become the title of your whole story. And it may explain, it may explain where you are. It does not define who you are. Because the enemy doesn't need to steal your future if he can convince you to rename your story. Don't let him, girl. Jesus already named it. He calls it beloved, chosen, forgiven, redeemed, and free. So before you leave the coffee table today, I want you to leave with one question. One question, I hope, that follows you into your kitchen, into your workplace, into your parenting, into your finances, your relationships, your prayers. Every time fear starts talking, every time shame starts whispering, every time your past tries to introduce itself, I want you to stop. I want you to smile, and then I want you to simply ask, who told me the glass was still there? And if it wasn't Jesus, you don't have to keep believing it. Because Jesus didn't come to make bad people better, he came to make captives free. So this week, celebrate freedom, celebrate your country if that's what you're doing this week when weekend, celebrate your family, celebrate the blessings God has given you. But more than anything, ladies, I want you to celebrate the freedom Jesus purchased for you, not just freedom around you, freedom within you. Because whom the Sun sets free is free indeed. So as I close, and before we leave the coffee table today, this week, pay attention to the conversations you're having with yourself. Not just the conversations you're having with your children, your coworkers, your friends. I'm talking about the conversation nobody else hears. Because that's where language is formed. When you hear yourself say, I'll never, blah, blah, blah, girlfriend, that is your signal to stop. Pause for the cause. When you hear yourself say, I'm just blah, blah, blah, blah, I want you to pause. When shame starts introducing you by your path, interrupt it. When fear starts writing an ending, God hasn't written, oh, I want you to question it. When condemnation starts speaking, blah, blah, blah, don't let it finish the sentence. Instead, ask one simple question. Well, who told me the glass was still there? And if it wasn't Jesus, it doesn't deserve to become your truth. Ladies, I don't know what invisible wall you've been living behind. I don't know if it's fear, regret, rejection, divorce, financial pressure. Maybe it's even loneliness. Maybe it's something no one else even knows about. But whatever it is, please know that Jesus is still asking the same question he asked in the garden. Who told you that? But because before God changes a behavior, he changes a belief. Before he changes circumstances, he changes identity. Before he changes a life, he changes the language. The enemy, girlfriend, has been using the same strategy since the beginning of time. Plan a lie, step back, watch us build a prison around ourselves. Oh, but not today, Satan. No, no, no, no. Today we are tearing the glass down. Today we are choosing a different language. Today we are believing a different voice. Because, girlfriend, one heartbreaking chapter, as we talked about before, doesn't get to become the title of your whole story. It may explain where you are simply right now. It does not define who you are because the enemy doesn't need to steal your future. If he can convince you to rename your story, I've said that three times through this podcast. I hope you remember that. Don't let him. Your story has already been named, redeemed, chosen, beloved, forgiven, set free. So whether you're celebrating independence this weekend or listening from somewhere else in the world, remember this, my friends. Political freedom, it is a gift. Spiritual freedom is a miracle. And the greatest freedom you'll ever experience. You'll ever experience isn't found. I said it twice, but it's about the experience. It isn't found in the country where you live. It's found in Christ who lives in you. Because whom the Son sets free is free indeed.

Prayer And Practical Next Steps

SPEAKER_01 32:14

So with a podcast like this, we need to end in some prayer. Jesus, thank you for meeting us at the coffee table today. Thank you for loving us enough to tell us the truth. Thank you that you didn't come simply to make our lives more comfortable. No, you came to make us free. Lord, forgive us for believing words you never spoke. Forgive us for agreeing with fear. Forgive us for partnering with shame. Forgive us for allowing disappointment to right conclusions you never intended. Today, Lord Jesus, we are laying down every invisible wall, every lie, every label, every false identity. We choose to renew our minds. Teach us to recognize your voice above every other voice. When fear speaks, Father, remind us of your faithfulness. When shame speaks, Father, remind us of your grace. When our past tries to define us, remind us that our identity was settled at the cross. Father, please, I beg you, teach us heaven's language. May our homes sound different because of it. May our children hear hope where they're once heard fear. May our friendships reflect grace. May our decisions reflect trust. May our lives become fluent in your truth. And Lord Jesus, for the one listening today who feels trapped behind a wall they can't seem to get past, Lord, would you gently remind her the glass isn't where she thinks it is. You're with her. You're for her. You're still writing her story. And one heartbreaking chapter will never become the title of the whole book. We love you, Father. We trust you. And today we choose freedom. In Jesus' name, amen. So, ladies, I just want to thank you so much for listening and thank you for pulling up a chair and joining me at the coffee table today in a hard conversation. And today's conversation, I hope, encouraged you. And if it has, would you please share this episode with someone? Because I have a feeling there are a lot of people living behind some invisible walls who need to hear that freedom begins with truth. And if today's conversation stirred something inside your heart, girl, listen, please don't walk through it alone. You know we have a 24-hour prayer line, and it's always available at 855-822 Pray, 855-822-7729. You can also find more encouragement at ShepherdsVillage.com where you'll discover blogs, online resources, Tuesday night classes, Bible studies, and every episode of It's a Single Bob Thing. And if you're ready to keep growing, listen, visit sv-university.org and explore Shepherd's Village University where you'll find online courses designed to help you build a confident future rooted in God's truth. So until next time, keep asking yourself, who told me the class was still there? And if it wasn't Jesus, don't spend another minute, another day believing it. I'll save you a seat right here at the coffee table. Have a wonderful week and remember it's a single mom thing.

SPEAKER_00 35:29

Thanks for listening to It's a Sing a Mom Thing. I hope you enjoyed our time together. If you have more questions on how to have a relationship with Jesus or prayer, visit us at www.shepherd's village.com. For more information and resources, check out Shepard.