Here are some verses about love to think about...
"He who covers over an offense promotes love, but whoever repeats the matter separates close friends." Proverbs 17:9. Love means forgiving and avoiding gossip.
"Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love." Romans 12:9-10. Love means devotion. Think about what it means to be truly devoted to another person. This is what love is and what we should be striving for.
"Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity." Colossians 3:12-14
"Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Every one 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 among us: 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." I John 4:7-12 Wow. God's perfect example of love. It's too bad that sometimes it is so hard for us to truly understand and put God's love into practice in our own lives. Also note that love is knowing God.
"This is love for God: to obey His commands. And His commands are not burdensome, for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith." I John 5:3 This is one of my favorites. It is so encouraging. Am I the only one who reads that first line and thinks "burdensome"? It's like God knew we would say that, so he put in the next part to encourage us and let us know that He is always with us, helping us to love him by obeying and growing in our faith.
What is your reaction to these verses? Do they inspire you? What do you learn or see about love in these verses? I challenge you to choose one of these verses, or one that you find on your own (please share it too!) and memorize it. Make it a sort of mantra this week and see if it makes a difference in your outlook, attitude, actions and life.
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Just like James said about faith, we prove our faith by our works.(John 2:14-18) John says that we show or prove our love for God by our obedience. The more we trust the more we obey. The more we obey the more we trust. I asked God to help me trust more and I hoped He would just push a button and poof, I would have it. Instead He put me in a situation that forced me to make a choice to trust, and just like excersizing a muscle, making the right choice increased my trust. It is very much worth it. Jeff
ReplyDeleteIt is so true to say it is like exercise. A discipline that we must put effort and focus into in order to have any success. Of course, God helps us each step of the way, but it is we who must take the steps and do the exercise.
ReplyDeleteOr like running a marathon, right? I'm currently training to run a half marathon and today per the schedule, I ran 5 miles. and let me tell you that it was HARD! First couple we're good and then my legs and knees start to hurt. And mentally, it is soooo tough to run 66 minutes on a treadmil in my basement! I just wanted to stop. But quitting wasn't an option. It's not an option if I want to do well (or just survive) in the race. And if I keep at it, some day, 5 miles won't seem so bad. But just like this, loving people and doing what God says, is so hard. Love doesn't come natural just like running a marathon doesn't come natural. But with practice and extra thought into it, it becomes easier. or at least I hope some of it becomes easier.
ReplyDeleteIf we don't push ourselves to try something new or something that seems hard, we will never know what we are capable of. We need to step out of our little safe box and see what God will do through us if we obey.
For me the memorizing is hard. it takes time and I need to go over and over and over it to remember. but it's a must just like training to run a race. we need to take the time to train. and now that josiah is really remembering everything, I need to be learning scripture so I can teach him and instill it in him while he is young.