Scripture for Your Inner Outcasts

Transcript

Dr. Gerry: "Lord, listen to my groaning."

Elizabeth: Welcome back to Scripture for Your Inner Outcasts. It's June 15th, 2026, Monday of the Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time. Today we are joined by Dr. Gerry Crete, one of the co-founders of Souls and Hearts, the author of the book Litanies of the Heart, and a counselor with his own private practice, Transfiguration Counseling, based in Atlanta, Georgia.

Dr. Gerry: If we just take a moment and just notice that in Psalm 5, it says, "Lord, listen to my groaning." It's not, "Lord, fix this. Explain it to me." Listen to my groaning. It's the cry of an exile. How many of you have cried out to God? In this story, if we move to the Gospel and we try to figure out how does this connect? Right. Jesus says, offer no resistance to one who is evil. Turn the other cheek. So this is not meant to be a doormat. It's not, this should not be a passage used to excuse abuse or tolerate abuse. But Jesus is saying is don't let evil make you into itself. Healthy boundaries are not about retaliation or revenge. An eye for an eye. It is what Jezebel did. It's not meant to be that. Healthy boundaries are meant to come from the inmost self, that grounded, compassionate center, just like Naboth. He set a clear boundary. He wasn't manipulating. He said, no, this is sacred and I cannot give it to you. Jesus himself was also crushed by the world for refusing to surrender what was sacred. The cross is the ultimate Naboth moment. And yet the Resurrection tells us that the vineyard, the true inheritance, cannot be stolen. So let's just take a quick moment here. Is there a Naboth place inside you, a part of your history or identity that has been seized by someone else, by a system that failed you? And can we bring it to God who listens to our groaning. And then is there an Ahab wound somewhere inside you, a place when it doesn't get what it wants, it sulks and withdraws? Ahab was a wounded man. What is that part really afraid of, that's similarly wounded. What does it believe it needs to be okay? All right. I will have to end there and just remind you, exiles, that the vineyard of your soul is worth protecting. And the God who is alive, the God who loves, listens to your groaning. He is the God of the resurrection. And you are not alone in any of this.

Elizabeth: Listeners can find more content from Dr. Gerry Crete, including a link to his book, The Litanies of the Heart, in the description of today's show. Thanks for joining us and we hope to see you again tomorrow.

Dr. Gerry: Mary, our Mother, Untier of Knots, pray for us. Saint Joseph, pray for us. Saint John the Baptist, pray for us.