Love & Acknowledgement

 

    Ps 91:14

 

14 "Because he loves me," says the Lord , "I will rescue him;

I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.

NIV

 

We, as a culture, are all about what we do.  When meeting someone for the first time it is not uncommon for one of the first questions that we ask them to be, "What do you do?"  This, of course, means "what do you do for a living".  We act as if someone's worth and value are wrapped up in what they do.

 

I have heard a powerful message from Joyce Meyer when she expounds the fact that we are "human beings" not "human doings." This means that we have inherent worth and value in the eyes of God completely apart from anything we do.  Human beings matter to the Lord because we are created in His image and for His glory.

 

Today's verse is one of those go-to verses when you are facing frightening circumstances.  It is a powerful reminder that God is faithful to watch over His own.  In this verse, in fact, it appears the primary "doing" is on God's side.  The part of the recipient?  Loving God and acknowledging His name.  That seems simple enough, right?! 

 

I have heard over the years all kinds  of formulas for getting God to answer prayers.  They usually involve claiming certain verses, taking faith steps, etc.  Although it is good to recall Scriptures, to pray Scriptures and to believe Scriptures, and even to do acts of obedience, still the action to perform it is on God's side.  He watches over His Word to perform in our lives an throughout the earth.

 

I believe that if we have a right heart, we will work for Jesus.  We will not do it to get anything out of the deal.  We will just serve because we love. Doing works of service are a vital part of the Christian life.  A natural outgrowth of a fruitful life in Him.  But the beginning and ending of it all, is found in loving God, believing, and acknowledging His Name.

 

Are you going through some stuff?  Relax, trust and love.   Rest in the Lord.  That is your part.  Taking care of you and your problem?  That's God's part.  And He is up for the job!

 

 Dear Lord, here I am.  I am here to love, worship and acknowledge You.  I choose to cast my care upon you and trust that you will take care of me.   In Jesus' Name.  Amen.

 

 

 

Eternal Love

 

    

 

Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. 2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing.  Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up;  Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; 5 does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil;  does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth;   bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.  Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away.

NKJV

   

Love never fails. This is so encouraging to know!  God's love never fails me. He is always perfect in love and his heart toward me is always love.   It gives me great confidence to trust in His love.  When I fail,  when I fall short, I do not have to fear that God will just be done with me. 

 

God's  love is total and just and righteous.  But it does not preclude judgment  if  we choose the path of sin.  Love and judgment coexist side by side.  His love purchased our salvation.  But it does not change the fact that He requires  holiness.

 

There is a time when the gift of tongues, knowledge or prophecy will no longer be needed.  When we are at rest with God in heaven, we will no longer have need of those things.  But there will never be a time, neither here nor in eternity, that we will not need love.  His love will carry  us through eternity without end.  If that is true (and it is! ) shouldn't we do all we can to perfect our love?

 

Thank you,  Father, for your love.  Help me to grow in love, walk in love, and relate to others with Your love.  In Jesus' Name.  Amen.

The Balance of Love

 

    

 

Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. 2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing.  Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up;  Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; 5 does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil;  does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth;   bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

NKJV

    

 

This  portion of the passage is  getting down to the nitty-gritty.  Love is strong and able to withstand a load. It makes me think of one of those paper towel commercials where they wet the towel and then put a piece of fruit on it, to show it is strong enough to withstand damage and a load and not break.   That is the case with true love.  When we love  someone we can bear up a whole lot, without breaking.  

 

True love also believes the best in the other person and for the other person.  Love is not suspicious or paranoid.  It is  not stingy  or selfish.  When we love someone, we believe that they have the best intentions and a good heart.  In addition, we can believe in prayer for their needs to be met.  The believing component is based in God's love- but that does not mean we are foolish and cannot see what is  obvious.  Love does not negate wisdom and discernment, it just filters out pettiness and paranoia!

 

Love also has hope contained within it.  We can hope for the best for someone we have the God-kind of love for. We are able to stretch our faith to cover their need.  We have an eager expectation of good for someone we love, rather than dashing their hopes and nay-saying over their lives.  Ultimately, when we walk in true love, we are able to share in God's feelings toward that person, selflessly wanting what is best for them.  There is no competition in that.  Instead, we  are their number-one fan and advocate.

 

Love endures all things.  Even when we believe the best, and they act the worst, love enables us to stay faithfully by their side.  Love is not wimpy, weak, or short lived.  True love is strong, stout and bold.  When they hurt our feelings, we choose to let it go.  When their weaknesses are exposed, we choose not to see.   When forgiveness is needed, we extend it freely.  When they are following our advice, or ignoring all of it,  love enables us to steadfastly support them.

Love is a beautiful, strong, and divine act.  The different facets outlined in these passages are beautiful and poetic.   They are ideals that we should strive for. To keep this message in balance, though, we have to apply it alongside the totality of the Word of God.  So we can be loving and yet discerning.  We can be loving and still confront sin.  We can walk in love and protect ourselves and the weaker ones involved in a situation.  Love does  not mean being a door mat or presenting ourselves to be used.  Jesus walked in absolute love and absolute wisdom.  He knew when to trust himself to someone and when not to.   Ask the Lord to reveal what love, in practice, would look like in your life and current situations.

Dear God, help me to walk in love and in wisdom.  Jesus, show me how you lived out love on this earth.  In Jesus' Name.  Amen.

True Joy

 

    

 

Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. 2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing.  Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up;  Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; 5 does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil;  does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth;

 

NKJV    

 

As a parent, I have tried to stress the truth to my boys that real friends want what is best for you.  True friends, do not encourage you to get into sin, or enjoy you being in sin.  Rather, true friends urge you to walk in keeping with truth. Friends do not encourage you to get into trouble.

The saying that "misery loves company" is true.  A good number of people who are living an unhappy and miserable life encourage other people to join them.  Why?   Because we do not like to be alone in our mess.  If somebody else is doing it, we feel less condemned about our choices.  Less empty and alone.

Love tells the truth to a friend, even when the truth hurts.  Love does not condone self-destructive paths  and urges friends to take care of themselves.  Love requires us to be honest when we see a person begin a string of wrong choices.  It does not take any special moral fiber to tell someone what they want to hear.  But a strong and loving person will tell you what you need to hear.

Real love is based in truth.  It is built upon truth and sustained by truth.  Lies and love do not mix!

Are there area in a relationship where you are feeling the need to lie to sustain the relationship?  Begin to seek the Lord today about how you can bring the relationship into truth and real love.

Dear God, help me to be a person of truth in all relationships.  Help me to urge people around  me to remain in truth rather than inquity.  In Jesus' Name.  Amen.

 

 

Giving All, Giving Nothing

 

    

1 Cor 13:1-3

 

Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. 2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned,* but have not love, it profits me nothing.

NKJV

 

Some things in life are hard on our flesh.  This is true even of spiritual things.  Verse three is a bitter pill to swallow!  The very idea that we could  completely empty ourselves of worldly treasures to help the poor, but get no return on it, is hard to understand.  But the next part is even more alien to our way of thinking- we can even die a martyr's death, but if we do it without love, it is meaningless!

How can these things even be true? They can, and they are. The Bible is nothing but a factual account of truth.  That goes to show us the high premium that the Lord places on love.  We can  do EVERYTHING  right, but if our heart is not right, we are not right!  God alone can cleanse the impurities from our heart.  He alone can rightly judge our intentions.  He alone gets to set the standard by which we are judged.

Many a good man or woman has sought to purchase salvation with good deeds.  Many have given money to a good cause to assuage guilt.  Many have volunteered their time to been seen as a generous benefactor.  All of that is meaningless!  There is no meaning, no context to life- without the essential requirement of love.  God is love.  He is synonymous with it.  If we are to be Godly, we must be loving.  Good deeds born of love have a huge impact in the lives of others and will be rewarded by our Heavenly Father.

Dear God, I need you to infuse me with your love.  Cleanse my motives and establish my works.  In Jesus' Name.  Amen.

 

Love: The Difference-Maker

 

   

    

1 Cor 13:1-2

 

13 Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. 2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.

NKJV

 

Throughout the ages, people  have been enamored by the "showier" gifts of the Spirit.  It is quite amazing when a person you do not know  speaks directly to your heart about a situation that you have been praying about for years and offers assurance that God has taken  care of it.  It is astounding when a person operates in a strong faith  gift and you seen signs and wonders  performed before your very eyes.  These gifts are a testimony to the awesome, supernatural, miracle-working power of the Holy Spirit.  They do still (and should!) accompany the preaching of the Word of God. The Lord has ordained it to be so, in order to be a sign to the unbeliever of His existence and power.

 

People who are able to reveal the mysteries of the word of God  to us are such a gift!  They are able to explain the complicated passages with grace and ease,  leaving us saying, "Ah.... that's what that means!"  Others operate in a strong "Word of Knowledge" gift and are able to tell us things that they have no earthly way of knowing. These people "read our mail" and prove to us that God sees us and loves us.  Many times I have been encouraged by this gift as someone  would lean over in the altar and tell me just what I needed to hear- something the Lord had been saying to me for a while, but was confirmed through the gift of knowledge.

 

All of these gifts are good and proper and add a beautiful dimension to worship and to our Christian walk.  But today' verse says, even if you can do all of this, if God's love is not in you... you are nothing!  God is not impressed with our spiritual gifts- He is the One who hands out gifts!  What impresses Him is when we know Him enough, when we share His heart, and we walk around in this  world loving as He does!  That impresses God.  That kind of testimony wins others to Jesus.  A lifestyle of God-breathed love preaches constantly in every arena of life.  The miracles of Jesus made a huge impact on this world.  But the thing that forever changed the course of history was His love!  When we can demonstrate His love in our home, on the job, at the ball field and in the grocery store, we are fulfilling our highest call- to love God and love people!

 

Dear Lord, help  me!  Help me to walk in your love, think in your love, speak in your love and act in your love.  Help me to be a walking testimony.    In Jesus' Name.  Amen.

 

 

Banging on the Keys

 

   

1 Cor 13:1

 

Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal.

My five-year-old likes to "play" the piano and his guitar.  His skill set consists of the ability to bang at the keys with all of his might, or strum the guitar with such vengeance, you are sure he is  going to break every string.   Don't get me wrong. I enjoy the show.   Usually he adds  some singing, and a whole lot of "Oh, yeah, baby." But during his performance, I have to remind myself not to wince when  he attacks the piano.  Something inside of me,  just does not like hearing wrong keys hit. Especially so many- and all at one time!

 

That is exactly how we sound to God when we do not have love.  We may be zealous.  We may enjoy it. We may even be doing the right thing, but without love as our motive, we just do not ring true.  

 

Years ago I helped facilitate group therapy.  In one of my groups,  our audience was mothers who, because of abuse allegations, had lost their children.  To hear some of the mothers complain about having to jump through hoops to get their kids back made my blood boil.  Really?  Really??!  You mind taking a drug test to get your kid back?  You are inconvenienced to make the supervised visits with your children?  I would often  sit there and think, even a dog has care and regard for its offspring.  A dog will protect  their newborns even from their master.  If animals get it, how can human mothers not get it?

 

Just as incongruent is an unloving Christian.  Follow me here.  God is love.  He is in us.  We are in Him.  We have been  baptized into Christ. He dwells in our heart.  His Spirit guides us.  It just seems impossible that all of that could be true and us not have love.

 

Love, like any other fruit of the Spirit, is on the inside of a true Christian.  As we abide in the vine (Christ), we receive nurture and sustenance from the vine, and ultimately, we bear fruit.   The seedling of love must be cultivated.  We have to learn to walk in  love, while squelching selfishness.  It takes discipline to choose to show love when we are being attacked by someone.  But it is crucial that we develop this fruit.  If we do not, all the world will do in response to our witness is cringe at the incongruence between what we say and how we act.

 

Dear Lord, please forgive me when I fail to walk in love.  Develop love in my  life and enable me to deny selfishness.    In Jesus' Name.  Amen.

 

 

Light Loving

 

"Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well.  This is how we know that  we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands.  This is love for God: to obey his commands.  And his commands are not burdensome,"  I John 5:1-2

 

"I would serve God, but there are too many rules!"  You have heard the excuses from people, just as I have.  Unsaved people tend to think that Christianity is a burdensome list of do's and don'ts that we laboriously carry out like robots.  It is not surprising that people feel that way.  For one thing, Satan is the deceiver, and he likes to present the gospel to people as too much trouble.  Another reason is that (possibly) well-meaning people have so legalized Christianity with their own rules that they make it seem unappealing to those on the outside.

 

The truth of the matter is, there is no greater joy in all the world than walking with God.  There is no greater delight than basking in his presence.  Obeying God's commands brings fulfillment that cannot be found in any other way.  For a child who feels loved by his parents, and who loves his parents in return, obedience is not hard to do.  When we are motivated by love, the grace to carry out the commands comes easily.

 

The Bible is full of the commands of God.  Some are reflected in the Ten Commandments, others  are found  in the New Testament.  They all tie back to loving God and loving people.  This endeavor is a lifelong pursuit that we meet with relative success at times and failure at others.

 

The commands of God are not burdensome because he lives inside of us and gives us what we need to complete it.  He shapes our motives and character and enables us to want what he wants.  He gifts us with the Holy Spirit to enable us to become more like him and to empower us to do his  will.  If we are only willing, God offers a no-fail plan of success.  He can redeem even our mistakes and turn it for our good.  What an amazing God we serve!

 

 

Dear Lord, help me be obedient to your commands.  Help me live your Word in my everyday life.   In Jesus' Name. Amen.

 

Sherri

 

 

 

Cross Your Heart?

 

"Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God. But every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.  You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.  They are from the world and therefore speak from the viewpoint of the world, and the world listens to them.  We are from God, and whoever knows God listens to us; but whoever is not from God does not listen to us.  This is how we recognize the Spirit of truth and the spirit of falsehood.  Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God.  Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.  Whoever does not love does not know God, because God  is love. This is how God showed his love: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love:  not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.  Dear friends, since God so loved us,  we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if  we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.  We know that we live in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit.  And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in  God. And so we know  and rely on the love God has for us.  God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.  In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in the world we are like him.  There is no fear in love.  But perfect loves drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment.  The one who fears is not made perfect in love.  We love because he first loved us. If anyone says, "I love God," yet hates his brother, he is a liar.  For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom  he has not seen. And he has given us this command:  Whoever loves God must also love his brother.." I John  4:1-21

 

Today's passage has a relational/directional aspect to it.   If we say we love God (vertical), then we must love out brother (horizontal).  If we hate our brother (horizontal) it precludes our ability to love God (vertical).  It would almost stand to reason that the two relationships discussed are going in different directions, and therefore, do not impede each other.  But, when combined, they make the shape of a cross. When Jesus died upon the cross, he was make the sacrifice upward to God for our atonement, and he sent the benefits of that sacrifice outward to us.

 

If we want to be right with God, we must be right with man- at least as far as loving them goes. We do not have to like everything they do;  nor do we have to condone things that we feel are wrong.  We do not have to allow people to abuse or mistreat us, but we must love.

 

So how does that look in application?  It means we can choose to have a different opinion, but not reject the person.  It means we can erect boundaries in relationships, but not harbor ill will in our hearts toward them.  To love, we must esteem them as a child of God.  We have to want the best for them and be able to pray for them.  Loving them may mean we pray that God convicts them of the abusive way they treat people.  Loving them may mean smiling in their direction while continuing to do what you feel you must do.

 

Oftentimes, we go in one extreme direction or the other.  We feel that in order to love people, we have to let them dump on us and do whatever they want.    Or we go in the opposite ditch and say, they are hateful;  therefore, I hate them.  This comes down to something I  once heard Joyce Meyer say, "We must separate our who for our do."

 

This means that we need to love the person no matter what.  But their actions?  We do not have to accept that.  We do not have to like it or pretend that we do.  When someone sins against you, it is godly  to explain to them how it makes you feel.  We just have to be careful that we do not attack their self-worth.

 

Love is a complicated matter.  It is an exercise we will practice every day in this life until we are finally and fully rejoined to our ultimate Love Source.  Can you  come up higher today in loving people?

 

Dear Lord, expose my heart to me.  Show me the people in my life that I am falling short in loving, and help me to love them in the right way.   In Jesus' Name. Amen.

 

Sherri