Tag: love

We Are Followers

September 14, 2024
Free jesus apostles jerusalem illustration

Blessed are those whose ways are blameless, who walk according to the law of the Lord. Blessed are those who keep his statutes and seek him with all their heart—they do no wrong but follow his ways. You have laid down precepts that are to be fully obeyed. Psalm 119:1-4

I usually post in the mornings, but I felt so strongly that God had something I needed to learn that I just had to read His Word tonight. He showed me tonight, that following Him is easy, in that all we have to do is follow His Word. He will never steer us wrong:) We have the perfect resource for following Him!

I realized, while reading Psalm 119 that if we love Him, we will automatically follow Him. We will be seekers of Him, keepers of His Word, talkers about Him, walkers with Him, obeyers of His will, surveyors of all He has done for us, and learners of many lessons He teaches. Best of all, our honor is to call ourselves a sojourner of another place, heaven! Psalm 119’s focus on our desire to faithfully follow our Lord got me excited about knowing Him better and being known by Him. What a privilege!

So, as we start another week, let’s be Seekers, Keepers, Talkers, Walkers, Obeyers, Surveyors, Learners and Sojourners! Let’s follow Him with all of ourselves, so we have no time to follow the world. (but let’s do pray for them!)

Dear Father, Thank You for loving us so much. We love You and desire to do Your will always, but You know we fail at times. Refresh our desire to know You more and better so we can be better servants of Yours. Guide our speech, actions and thoughts to glorify You and love others deeply. Amen

With love from the Father to you, have a wonderful day or evening!

Tina

Of Love and Peace

November 16, 2020

My friend and I were talking awhile back about how we have concerns within our family, nothing earth-shattering. She said she was praying about her attitude towards someone that she needed to forgive. Though she could have been asking God to fix the other person or show them the error of their ways, she was praying for her part in the matter. What the Lord thought of her was more important than what the family member did. Her dependence on God is a great example to me.

You may remember a time when you disagreed with someone and the discord upset you. The struggle is real. It’s hard to deal with the frustration and not easy to let go of someone’s unkindness and forgive them. However, if we step back a moment and see the big picture, things become easier. That is a little “trick” that one of my pastors taught me. You need to get the right perspective before you can see things God’s way. That may involve stepping back from pride and selfishness and looking at things from God’s angle. How does He see things? Paul writes an excellent guide to treating others how in a way God would approve of:

Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection. And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful. Colossians 3:12-15

Paul describes love as being the bond of perfection. Just as love held Jesus to the cross for our sins, we can be held to each other with the glue of love. My pastor was right. When we consider the big picture, things look very different. We can see the value of the virtues of kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering and forgiving. We don’t have to do it by ourselves. Jesus helps us! Bonus…when we love, we receive His peace!

You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You. Isaiah 26:3 NKJV

Dear Father,

Thank You for loving us although we are imperfect. Help me to love others like You do. Help me to see love as the glue that we are meant to use on others generously. Thank You for guiding me to a place of peace in my relationships when I stumble. You are peace and I am so glad You are always with me. I love you! Amen

Journal “GROWwork” :

Touch base with someone who may have hurt your feelings or someone you know does not have many friends. Use God’s “glue of love” to restore a relationship, or start one with someone who needs love. Let’s grow from our experiences:)

(As always, I do the homework/GROW work too. I may need it most.)

Love and prayers to all,

Tina