Tag: LoveOneAnother

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Grateful for God’s Love

I hope you are looking forward to these morning blogs as we continue to focus on “God is Good”!

This morning I have a couple more verses I want us to learn from but before that let me tell you a story about our kids when they were little.

We didn’t want them growing up to be critical or judgmental. We tried to teach them that every person had value and purpose. After all, God is the giver of all life. We might not like what someone does but that doesn’t give us reason to become bitter, resentful or critical.

We told them they needed to look for something good or nice to say about everyone, even if all they could find to say was “they have clean fingernails”. And then we would laugh. Yes, that’s an obscure quality but at least it was something positive and it got them looking for the good in people.

“God showed his love for us when he sent his only Son into the world to give us life. 10 Real love isn’t our love for God, but his love for us. God sent his Son to be the sacrifice by which our sins are forgiven. 11 Dear friends, since God loved us this much, we must love each other. 12  No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love is truly in our hearts.” I John 4:9-12 CEV

Each person we meet or deal with on a daily basis was created and loved by God. In God’s sight, they are no less lovable than you or I. As the verses above say real love, true love, isn’t our love for God but His love for us.

God’s love for us is unconditional. Even in our sin He loved us and made provision for our salvation. His desire is to have all people, everywhere reconciled to Himself. We may all be surprised when we get to heaven and see someone that we didn’t expect to see but no one will be there because of our efforts. We will all enter heaven because we accept the sacrifice of Jesus and receive the love and grace that He gives.

“Christ died for us at a time when we were helpless and sinful. 7 No one is really willing to die for an honest person, though someone might be willing to die for a truly good person. 8 But God showed how much he loved us by having Christ die for us, even though we were sinful.

9 But there is more! Now that God has accepted us because Christ sacrificed his life’s blood, we will also be kept safe from God’s anger. 10 Even when we were God’s enemies, he made peace with us, because his Son died for us. Yet something even greater than friendship is ours. Now that we are at peace with God, we will be saved by the life of his Son.” Romans 5:6-10 CEV

God’s love, His unconditional, never-ending love has brought us to a place of peace. I am grateful that He loves me!

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Feel The Heat

It’s chilly this morning – down to 37 when I got up. I am grateful for the warmth of my heater, grateful that I’m not tent camping but most grateful for the warmth I feel in my spirit.

The heater is nice but what’s better is the warmth of the glow of the Father’s love in my heart. Reading His word, this morning and every morning, I sense His love, goodness and grace. It sets my heart on fire.

I am having a hard time coming up with the words to express my wonder and amazement in the goodness of God and His love!

I have been reading through the book of John and am only now coming to the end of chapter 10. So far in this book Jesus has turned the water into wine, fed the 5000, calmed the storm, walked on water, healed the blind, defended the adulterous woman, healed a lame man and the centurion’s son.

He was setting the world on fire with the love and goodness of His Father but the religious leaders were doing all they could to extinguish the flame.

“It was winter, and the time came for the Festival of Dedication at Jerusalem. 23 Jesus was in the Temple area at Solomon’s Porch. 24 The Jewish leaders gathered around him. They said, ‘How long will you make us wonder about you? If you are the Messiah, then tell us clearly.’

25 Jesus answered, ‘I told you already, but you did not believe. I do miracles in my Father’s name. These miracles show who I am. 26 But you do not believe, because you are not my sheep. 27 My sheep listen to my voice. I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give my sheep eternal life. They will never die, and no one can take them out of my hand. 29 My Father is the one who gave them to me, and he is greater than all. No one can steal my sheep out of his hand. 30 The Father and I are one.’” John 10:22-30 ERV

Seriously? Everytime Jesus did something wonderful for the people, these men were there to question his motives and his character. They wanted to kill him for doing good!

In the face of accusation, Jesus stays on point. “I am doing what my Father sent me to do – the Father and I are one!”

That truly is the definition of love; love is patient and kind, love suffers long, love thinks the best.

Jesus is to be our example for walking in love. When we are falsely accused and maligned, when the folks around us are so angry that they would like to destroy us, can we walk in love?

I want to be Christ like, walking in that kind of love. I thank the Father that He is conforming me to His image so that the warmth of His love will flow through me to others.

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Make the Most of It

Time robbers – they are all around us! We need to be aware of their tactics and stand on guard.

I’ll admit there are some time robbers that have infiltrated my daily routine. Now, before I go any further, I want to say that I am not condemning anyone but will simply be pointing out an area the Holy Spirit has pointed out in my life that He wants me to change.

I spend more time than I should each day playing on my computer. I like several different types of Solitaire. I feel it challenges my problem-solving skills and keeps me alert, however, I allow it to rob time from other things that need my attention.

For weeks, I’ve been saying that I need to write to a few people and encourage them – let them know I’m thinking of them and praying for them but that has gotten pushed to the background while I play “just one more hand”.

“ So be very careful how you live. Live wisely, not like fools. 16 I mean that you should use every opportunity you have for doing good, because these are evil times. 17 So don’t be foolish with your lives, but learn what the Lord wants you to do.” Ephesians 5:15-17 ERV

Use every opportunity for doing good.

Please hear me on this, relaxation is not wrong. We can become so busy that we neglect to rest. There is nothing wrong with playing computer Solitaire but if it robs my time and my energy and keeps me from doing other things that have a more lasting value then it’s a problem.

“God sent Jesus Christ our Savior to give us his Spirit. 7 Jesus treated us much better than we deserve. He made us acceptable to God and gave us the hope of eternal life. 8 This message is certainly true. These teachings are useful and helpful for everyone. I want you to insist that the people follow them, so that all who have faith in God will be sure to do good deeds.” Titus 3:6-8 CEV

Be sure to do good deeds.

This makes me think of the story of the Good Samaritan. Three people saw the man who had been beaten and robbed. Only one stopped to help. I don’t know why – maybe they were scared or just too busy, needing to get to their next appointment so they walked on by. The sad thing about this is one was a priest and one was a worker at the temple.

The thing with time robbers is that many of them aren’t offensive, illegal or immoral but they do keep us from doing something better.

“God planned for us to do good things and to live as he has always wanted us to live. This is why he sent Christ to make us what we are.” Ephesians 2:10 CEV

If the Lord is showing you things that are robbing your time, ask for His help in correcting the situation. If nothing comes to mind, then praise God for right priorities.

Let’s all make the most of the time we have to do good things that will honor the Father and be a blessing to others.

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Debt Free

For years Dave and I were like a lot of people, we struggled financially. We knew we needed to be better stewards of what God had given us.

Finally, we came to that place where we are debt free, almost. It’s an amazing thing to watch how God has moved. We don’t have millions but we have more than enough. There is one area of debt that we will always have, let me explain.

Have you ever put together a profit and loss statement? Listing your assests and liabilities can certainly be worthwhile in determining how you should spend your time and your money.

Get down to the bottom line. What do you owe? That’s the question the Apostle Paul was addressing this morning as I read Romans 13.

“You should owe nothing to anyone, except that you will always owe love to each other. The person who loves others has done all that the law commands. 9 The law says, “You must not commit adultery, you must not murder anyone, you must not steal, you must not want what belongs to someone else.” All these commands and all other commands are really only one rule: “Love your neighbor the same as you love yourself.” 10 Love doesn’t hurt others. So loving is the same as obeying all the law.

11 I say this because you know that we live in an important time. Yes, it is now time for you to wake up from your sleep. Our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. 12 The night is almost finished. The day is almost here. So we should stop doing whatever belongs to darkness. We should prepare ourselves to fight evil with the weapons that belong to the light. 13 We should live in a right way, like people who belong to the day. We should not have wild parties or be drunk. We should not be involved in sexual sin or any kind of immoral behavior. We should not cause arguments and trouble or be jealous. 14 But be like the Lord Jesus Christ, so that when people see what you do, they will see Christ. Don’t think about how to satisfy the desires of your sinful self.” Romans 13:8-14 ERV

Owe no one anything…nothing except love!

The desire to live debt free is admirable and is one worth pursuing. An even greater goal is to live a life of loving people, not with a human selfish love but with the same love that Jesus shows us. That is the debt we will always carry.

So, let’s look at that bottom line of our Profit/Loss statement again. What do we owe?

May love be our daily debt!

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Pure Motives

When you are doing something nice for someone, do you ever hear “they probably won’t appreciate this anyway” going off in your head? If so, you’re not alone. I had to deal with that many times in my younger years.

I Corinthians 13, the love chapter, tells us that if we martyr ourselves and it isn’t motivated by love – then it profits us nothing. “I’m giving all my time to do this or that and no one will really appreciate it anyway – no one is going to know how hard I worked, how I gave up sleep, how much it cost me to do this nice thing” – these are all wrong motives!

Years ago, I would do things for people just to get them to like or accept me. I tried to buy friendship -what a destructive force that can be! I was so insecure in who I was that I needed constant affirmation from others that I was lovable.

Then I heard a wonderful godly woman, Dale Evans Rogers, speak in our college chapel service about God’s love, His unconditional love, and it got through. Knowing that God loves me – really loves me – is more than enough acceptance to last a lifetime.

I went from doing things for people to get them to like and accept me to doing the same things because I really loved those people. I wanted them to know they were loved and appreciated. A complete turnaround in my motivation.

The prodigal son tried to buy friends and they abandon him when he could no longer foot the bill for their entertainment.

“Not long after that, the younger son packed up everything he owned and left for a foreign country, where he wasted all his money in wild living. 14 He had spent everything, when a bad famine spread through that whole land. Soon he had nothing to eat.” Luke 15:13-14 CEV

Our motivation should be one of expressing love without expecting anything in return.

“I may give away everything I have to help others, and I may even give my body as an offering to be burned. But I gain nothing by doing all this if I don’t have love. 4 Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous, it does not brag, and it is not proud. 5 Love is not rude, it is not selfish, and it cannot be made angry easily. Love does not remember wrongs done against it. 6 Love is never happy when others do wrong, but it is always happy with the truth. 7 Love never gives up on people. It never stops trusting, never loses hope, and never quits. 8 Love will never end.” I Corinthians 13:3-8 CEV

Jesus was always being criticized for His actions of compassion. He ate with tax collectors, engaged fallen women in conversation, showed compassion and healing to the outcasts. His motive was always pure, one of love.

“Whoever wants to be first must serve the rest of you like a slave. 45 Follow my example: Even the Son of Man did not come for people to serve him. He came to serve others and to give his life to save many people.” Mark 10:44-45 ERV

Let’s serve others with a pure heart, no other motivation is required. We have the opportunity to be an example of Jesus’ love.

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A Haze on the Meadow

This was the scene out my window this morning – there was a haze on the meadow.

You know I love taking pictures but I’m far from being a real photographer. I look at great photography as real art. The ability to capture the beauty that is seen with the natural eye through a lens is a true gift!

I take a lot of pictures and the thing I realized was how quickly I had been in taking some of them. Blurry – delete. Off center – crop. No one was ready – trash it.

The true photographer is patient; waiting for the right angle, the perfect light and then they bring it all into focus! A masterpiece.

A lot of people take life the same way – hurry up and click. Snap, snap, snap. Delete, trash it, do over. Or better yet they spent their lives taking selfies and never learn to include the beauty or the people around them.

With a Christ-centered focus, we can zoom in on what’s important. Bring even the tiniest of details up close and appreciate the intricate design – the design of health, friendship, innocence, honesty, joy, patience, love.

Reminds me of the story Jesus told of the Good Samaritan. The priest and the Levite were too busy taking selfies to be concerned with the hurting of the man who had been robbed but the Samaritan zoomed in, focused on the situation and saw the beauty of caring for someone other than himself.

“The next day, the Samaritan took out two silver coins and gave them to the man who worked at the inn. He said, ‘Take care of this hurt man. If you spend more money on him, I will pay it back to you when I come again.’

36 Then Jesus said, ‘Which one of these three men do you think was really a neighbor to the man who was hurt by the robbers?’

37 The teacher of the law answered, ‘The one who helped him.’

Jesus said, ‘Then you go and do the same.’” Luke 10:35-37 ERV

Lord, improve my focus today. Let me love my neighbor as you have loved me.

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A Lesson from Pooh

I hope this morning’s image makes you smile. It does me.

The Lord brings so many different characters into our lives; each one of them are beloved by Him. I sometimes forget that. Years ago, I gained insight on giving “others” more value while reading some of the stories of Winnie the Pooh. Each day I meet new characters and the Lord reminds me that although they are different from my norm, they are valuable.

I developed a philosophy that every person could be identified as one of the characters in that story, Christopher Robin, Pooh, Piglet, Eeyore, Tigger, Owl, Rabbit, Kanga & Roo. All very different personalities yet they all work together to bring love & understanding to their world and to accomplish their tasks.

While reading I Corinthians 12 I am reminded of these characters and how they interact when I read these words that Paul wrote.

“There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but they all come from the same Spirit. 5 There are different ways to serve the same Lord, 6 and we can each do different things. Yet the same God works in all of us and helps us in everything we do. 7 The Spirit has given each of us a special way of serving others.” I Corinthians 12:4-7 CEV

God the Father has written our story with purpose and design, Jesus came to show love to all of us and the Holy Spirit is here to lead us each day.

While some of us act like owl with the gift of administration, others show hospitality like Tigger. Pooh is always encouraging, and Rabbit makes sure everyone has a task to do. Piglet and Roo are there to remind us that we should always reassure those who are younger and inexperienced while Kanga provides the nurturing and love that we all need. Eeyore reminds us that everyone has fears and self-doubts that we need our friends to help us through the tough times.

Instead of looking at those around us and either being jealous of their gifts or critical of them it’s important for us to remember that it is God who gives the gifts, and they are not for our benefit but the benefit of others.

Who do you see around you? Some are here to help us grow and others need our help.

Let the Spirit lead!

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Withhold Judgement

This past weekend our campground was full. Lots of campers from different towns and backgrounds. Some were first time campers and others have been doing it for years.

There are times I judge people by their outward appearance without seeing who Jesus sees. Just being honest with you folks. I did some that this weekend and I’m not proud of my actions.

I thought, if I had been with Jesus when he was preaching and teaching would I have been accepting of the woman in adultery, would I have been willing to eat dinner with Zacchaeus, would I have even talked to the woman at the well long enough to find out that she needed a friend or a Savior?

In Romans 15, Paul teaches us how to handle differences without judging. Look at what he says.

“And the Scriptures were written to teach and encourage us by giving us hope. 5 God is the one who makes us patient and cheerful. I pray that he will help you live at peace with each other, as you follow Christ. 6 Then all of you together will praise God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

7 Honor God by accepting each other, as Christ has accepted you. 8 I tell you that Christ came as a servant of the Jews to show that God has kept the promises he made to their famous ancestors. Christ also came, 9 so that the Gentiles would praise God for being kind to them…13 I pray that God, who gives hope, will bless you with complete happiness and peace because of your faith. And may the power of the Holy Spirit fill you with hope.” Romans 15:4-13 CEV

We are always going to have different opinions over politics, money, education, appearance, lifestyle, doctrines but those differences should never stop us from loving those whom God created.

Now lest you think that I am condoning sin, I’m not but we need to have the same mind as Christ in this. He hated sin so much that He died to pay the price for atonement but He loved the sinner so much that He willing went to the cross.

“My children, I will be with you for a little while longer. Then you will look for me, but you won’t find me. I tell you just as I told the people, ‘You cannot go where I am going.’ 34 But I am giving you a new command. You must love each other, just as I have loved you. 35 If you love each other, everyone will know that you are my disciples.” John 13:33-35 CEV

Get to know people. Look for their God-given qualities and withhold judgement.

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A Perfect Heart

Years ago we learned a song in church that still rings in my heart.

“Bless the Lord Who reigns with beauty
Bless the Lord Who reigns with wisdom and with power
Bless the Lord Who reigns my life with so much love
He can make a perfect heart“

No matter how hard we try, we can’t make our heart perfect. It’s beyond our ability but in Christ, we have been made a new creature and with that we are given God’s DNA (divine nature ability).

Our life in Christ gives us His righteousness as an exchange for our sin.

“But Christ offered only one sacrifice for sins, and that sacrifice is good for all time. Then he sat down at the right side of God. 13 And now Christ waits there for his enemies to be put under his power. 14 With one sacrifice Christ made his people perfect forever.” Hebrews 10:12-14

A perfect heart. A heart filled with love!

“My children, let us not love with words or in talk only. Let us love by what we do and in truth. 19 This is how we know we are Christians. It will give our heart comfort for sure when we stand before Him.” I John 3:18-19 NLV

Loving in deed and not words only. The old adage “actions speak louder than words” rings true.

“God so loved the world that He gave”…He gave what meant the most to Him, Jesus! Jesus gave what was most valuable to Him, his life.

“17 The Father loves me, because I give up my life, so I may receive it back again. 18 No one takes my life from me. I give it up willingly! I have the power to give it up and the power to receive it back again, just as my Father commanded me to do.” John 10:17-18 CEV

A perfect heart.

” Now I tell you to love each other, as I have loved you. 13 The greatest way to show love for friends is to die for them. 14 And you are my friends, if you obey me.” John 15:12-14 CEV

Father, my desire is to be like Jesus. I want a heart that is open to serving others in the same way that Jesus did. Let my life reflect you in all I do. I desire a perfect heart. Amen.

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I Love My Job

Campers have started arriving and I truly enjoy hearing the voices of small children giggling throughout the campground.

Moms and Dads are bringing their kids to the same place they came as children with their parents. Fisherman are leaving the campground at “0-dark30” to find that special place on the shoreline or to be the first to launch their boats. Each one in pursuit of that record rainbow or cutthroat trout.

Folks are walking their dogs and exploring nature. There are so many sites to see!

Dave and I pray for each of them – we pray for safety and protection, for enjoyment and relaxation. This year we are facing another Summer where Winter snowpack and Spring rains were sparse, so we are praying against fires and for good rains to moisten the ground and add water to the lakes.

This morning I found these verses in my Bible reading. I know I’ve read them before but this morning they stood out and made an impact.

“ We should think of their good and try to help them by doing what pleases them. 3  Even Christ did not try to please himself. But as the Scriptures say, “The people who insulted you also insulted me.” 4  And the Scriptures were written to teach and encourage us by giving us hope. 5 God is the one who makes us patient and cheerful. I pray that he will help you live at peace with each other, as you follow Christ. 6 Then all of you together will praise God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Romans 15:2-6 CEV

Patient, cheerful, doing good – that shall be my motto for the summer. In all I do, I want to follow Christ and give God praise.

The Lord has us all in different places, touching different lives. Let’s look for opportunities to be an example of His love in all we do!

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