Do You Love Me?

 

 

"Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me."

It is an amazing concept that whatever we do to others, good or bad, we are doing to Jesus Himself. Our love and our commitment to God is demonstrated in how we treat others!

Are we kind or sharp tongued? Do we use our words to edify or do we use them to tear down? Do we take time to listen to the hurts of others or do we tune them out? Are we willing to lay down our agenda to lend a helping hand or do we find doing for others to be an interruption to our lives? Do we have a cheerful heart when we serve others or do we grumble and complain when we aren't recognized for our deeds? Are we quick to give when there is a need or do we hoard what we have rather than seeing that we are blessed to be a blessing?

The Scriptures are clear that God takes account of everything - down to EVERY idle word we speak!

We are EXPECTED to exercise self control even when we are offended or irritated by another's actions. Why? Because when we don't we aren't being effective lights for Jesus in a dark world. We aren't representing Him correctly and ultimately we bring shame to His name. It's the love of God that leads men to repentance. If we can't love others with God's love, we cannot reach them for Christ.

"After breakfast Jesus asked Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love Me more than these” “Yes, Lord,” Peter replied, “you know I love You.”  “Then feed My lambs,” Jesus told him.  Jesus repeated the question: “Simon son of John, do you love Me?” “Yes, Lord,” Peter said, “you know I love You.” “Then take care of my sheep,” Jesus said.  A third time he asked him, “Simon son of John, do you love Me?” Peter was hurt that Jesus asked the question a third time. He said, “Lord, You know everything. You know that I love You.”

Jesus said, “Then feed My sheep."

Our actions mirror our hearts. Is there enough evidence in how we treat others to convict us of being true lovers of Jesus? Jesus is asking us the same thing, "Do you love Me?"

(Matthew 25:31-45, Matthew 12:36, Matthew 5:14-16, Genesis 12:1-3, 2 Cor 9:8-12, 1 Cor 13, Prov 12:25, Prov 19:17, Prov 25:11, Eph 4:32)

Living Water

 

 

Drawing from a source

That is only temporary

A thirst never quenched

Issues only buried

 

A desire that is craved

But you never truly get

No matter how much you have

The need is never met

Come see what I have to offer

You will never again thirst

It will become a well within you

In which eternal life is birthed

 

If I told you all your secrets

And counted your failed tries

Would you draw from My well

Where you’ll finally be satisfied?

(John 4)

Trust

 

Jesus was speaking to a multitude of people - saying things that didn’t make sense to their natural mind. Much of it seemed quite bizarre, leading some to think that He was a crazy man. At the conclusion of His talk, the Bible says:

“From this time many of His disciples turned back and no longer followed Him. "Do you also want to go away?" Jesus asked the Twelve. Simon Peter answered Him, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.”

Notice that Peter doesn’t stop there, but goes on to say, “Also we have come to BELIEVE and KNOW that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” (John 6:66-69)

When we come to the realization that Jesus is who He says He is, we can fully trust Him when He tells us something or directs us in a way that doesn’t make sense to us. We can trust Him even when the multitude mocks and when those who once followed Him walk away.

“For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.” (Isaiah 55:9)

TRUST HIM! And trust that His plans for you ARE good! (Jeremiah 29:11) J

Knowing God

On an afternoon walk, a common way that I like to connect with the Lord, I heard Him speak to my spirit, "I want My people to truly know Me for all that I am, not just a portion."

He showed me how we all have different people in our lives for different purposes. We go to the doctor for our physical health. We have our pastors and accountability partners who help us grow spiritually. We have people in our lives that are strictly for business purposes, connections that help us gain wisdom in the area of business, discovering ways to prosper. We have friends who are there for us emotionally. We have friends who are there for us just for a good laugh...

The different people in our lives play a different role... In most cases, we do not know these people in the fullness of who they are... They meet a certain need - vice versa, but it's a limited relationship that lacks intimacy.

God so desires a deep, abiding relationship with each one of us. That is why He is challenging us to know Him as the All Sufficient One. Many times we focus primarily on Him being a faithful God, our Healer, our Comfort, or the One who provides. He is all of those things, but we have to stop limiting Him to a part of who He is and making Him just another "person," another "go to" that is only given access to a portion of our lives. He so desires our intimate acquaintance. In knowing the depths of who someone is, true intimacy is then birthed.

I want to encourage you to study the Word and gather tools to assist you in navigating through the Scriptures. There is so much more to God than we have even begun to tap into. He is the "I AM." In Him our every need is found. In Him we can do all things. In Him we are complete. In Him is life. In Him we live, and move, and have our being. We need Him! And the beautiful thing is, He longs for and desires us...

(Acts 17:28, John 1:4, Colossians 2:10, Philippians 4:13, 1 John 4:19)

Study tools: :)
http://www.biblegateway.com/
http://www.gailrodgers.ca/index.php/site/devotionalSeries/C24/
http://truthmedia.com/training/attributes_god/

Love Your Neighbor

 

 

"Love your neighbor as yourself," embodies so much more than a rule to live by or an act to prove our love for God. There are blessings in obedience, but ultimately all guidelines that God lays out for us are laced with an eternal perspective much bigger than ourselves. God is about furthering His kingdom. We are the hands and feet of Christ in the earth to accomplish just that.

Think about this! Those who lowered the Apostle Paul through the window to escape the death threat on his life were actually letting down 13 books of the Bible! You never know the affect you have when you do something to help or encourage another... Remember, your act of love could reshape one's entire future ~ and generations following!

Prayer for Fathers

We thank You that you are a faithful Father who we can always count on to meet us right where we are. You engage in our world. You concern Yourself with the things that matter to us and are always looking out for our best interest in those things. We can trust You.

Many of us, Lord, haven't had that example in an earthly father. We ask that You send down Your healing to the brokeness that we are living out day after day because of that missing void in our lives. We all need to be fathered and when that ingredient is missing, life just isn't what You ordained it to be. But in Your goodness - You chose to be a Father to us. May Your pure love fill all the cracks within us that need to be filled.

We pray for fathers to be awakened to the great call that they have. When a child sees their father - the way he lives, the way he acts, the way he treats others, the way he treats them - they should see a man who is mirroring his life after You. We pray that fathers would have a passion for their children's spiritual health by demonstrating Your perfect love and fervently teaching them Your ways and how to hear Your voice.

Father, we ask for Your blessing on the men who have willfully taken the role of father seriously whether it be with their  biological children, those they have "adopted" as their own, or those who have access to be a positive influence and role model in a child's life. Grant them strength and wisdom to finish the race strong. We pray they would be reassured how worthy their call is and that what they have committed to will not be in vain. You have placed a generation within their hands, and we know that You are smiling down on them. Amen. :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I7SH9eP7Q_o

What Does Father Mean to You?

 

What does “father” mean to you? For many it is one who has caused you great pain in life or one you never even knew. If this is you, I hurt for you and understand that void... I understand the warped sense of "father" you have carried, and you know what? God understands too. The very fact that He has a Scripture just for you: "He is a Father to the fatherless." (Psalm 68:5), clearly shows He wants everyone to understand the TRUE meaning of a father and experience the beauty of it in their lives.

A true father will get down to the level of his children; engaging in “their” world with a heart full of love for them not for what they do, but because they are his; a gift entrusted to him. He exercises patience in times of rebellion and yet spurs his children on to become who they are called to be; what they are capable of becoming in this life.

Isn’t it amazing that God, the Creator of everything, wants us to call Him “Father?” Having Him as Father makes Him a living, personal being who is concerned with our day to day challenges, joys, fears… And just like any good father loves to hear his children call him by name, our Heavenly Father is longing for the same...

When you call on Him, with open arms, He meets you right where you are... You don't have to fear being turned away or put off for another time... Climbing into the safety of "Daddy's" arms is the best place to be...

You can’t hug someone who is resisting you. You can’t share your love and the secrets of your heart with one who is continually speaking… It’s time we let down our wall and quiet ourselves for a love encounter with Him. He is waiting on us because He counts it a great joy to love on His children...