Category: Love

A Life that Has a Home

All of us at different times in our lives will feel lonely. Sometimes we can be in the midst of people but other times we need a home. The Lord made us to have a home. Home is where the heart goes to even if the body has to wait for awhile. Home is where you are loved and the body, soul and spirit can rest.

Psalm 68:6 God makes a home for the lonely; He leads out the prisoners into prosperity, Only the rebellious dwell in a parched land.

The devil destroys the home and keeps his prisoners from being able to go home.

Isaiah 14:7 Who made the world like a wilderness And overthrew its cities, Who did not allow his prisoners to go home?

When Jesus walked and lived on earth He often sent people home after they were cleansed and forgiven.

Matthew 9:6,7  But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—then He said to the paralytic, “Get up, pick up your bed and go home.” And he got up and went home.

The Lord was not afraid to go into the homes of the sick, poor and needy.

Matthew 26:6 Now when Jesus was in Bethany, at the home of Simon the leper,

After we become a Christian He wants us to home and share with our family what great things He has done.

Mark 5:19 …but He said to him, “Go home to your people and report to them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He had mercy on you.”

God is a restorer and still wants to restore. Those who serve Him will also want to restore for others the paths that lead home.

Isaiah 58:12 Those from among you will rebuild the ancient ruins; You will raise up the age-old foundations; And you will be called the repairer of the breach, The restorer of the streets in which to dwell.

Sometimes the Lord calls His children to serve Him and to leave their homes. He promises to provide other homes for them and many more than what they gave up for Him. The Lord is no man’s debtor. He always gives back more to us than what we give to Him.

Luke 18:28-30 Peter said, “Behold, we have left our own homes and followed You.” And He said to them, “Truly I say to you, there is no one who has left house or wife or brothers or parents or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, who will not receive many times as much at this time and in the age to come, eternal life.”

Finally, He promises all of us who have followed Him and trusted Him in this life, a home in heaven.

John 14:2 In My Father’s house are many dwelling laces; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you.

One day we will go and be with Him and what a glorious day that will be. Don’t get discouraged in this life. Remain faithful to Him for He is faithful to you if you have trusted Him. Yes, one day soon we will go home forever. The older you get the more your heart longs to go to that eternal home where you are loved and where you body, soul and spirit can rest forever. He has a place prepared for you.

 

 

 

A Life that Rules

We all want to rule in life. It is much easier to do things voluntarily rather than to be forced to certain actions. The Lord tells us how to rule in this world.

Proverbs 12:24 The hand of the diligent will rule, But the slack hand will be put to forced labor.

The hand of the diligent will rule in school, on the job, in friendships and in every area. If you are diligent your children, when you have them, will become like you and it is much easier to raise diligent children rather than lazy children. If you learn to be diligent, which is a discipline of your character, you will be much happier and you will be a blessing to those whom you do life with, whether on the job or in the home.

Proverbs 18:9 He also who is slack in his work is brother to him who destroys.

Slackness comes next to destruction and everyone who is slack in their work will be a burden to everyone. Also, if you are slack in the time of stress then your strength will be limited by your own doing.

Proverbs 24:10 If you are slack in the day of distress, your strength is limited.

However, there is an area that if you learn to be diligent in, then it will overflow in every area of your life and help you in your areas of weakness. We all struggle with weakness of character but if you are diligent in your relationship with the Lord then He will make His strength known through your weakness.

Deuteronomy 6:17 You should diligently keep the commandments of the Lord your God, and His testimonies and His statutes which He has commanded you.

You must be diligent in your seeking after Him. Do whatever it takes to run hard after God and to know Him and what He has commanded you to do. Get your friends to help you. Go to an older godly woman and ask her to meet with you and to pray for you. Don’t wait until someone comes to you. Seek assistance and you will find help, knock and the opportunities will open for you.

Joshua 23:11 So take diligent heed to yourselves to love the Lord your God.

You must be a woman of purpose and that purpose must be to love the Lord your God with all your heart and soul and mind. If you love Him you will keep His commandments.

John 14:21 He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will disclose Myself to him.

Not only will your life be smoother if you learn diligence but you will rule in this life. In your spiritual life, if you learn diligence, not only will you learn His commandments but you will keep them. When you keep His commandments He will make Himself known to you and you will receive the greatest treasure there is and that is to know Him.

 

 

 

 

A Life that Chooses Life and Peace

There are two people within the Christian. There is the “old person” which is called the flesh and there is the “new person” who is the new spiritual man that came alive when a Christian is born again. He is born spiritually. This truth is a puzzlement to an unbeliever but is a reality to the Christian. A religious man asked Jesus this question 2000 years ago.

John 3:4 Nicodemus said to Him, “How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born, can he?”

Jesus answered him because he was truly seeking to know the truth. The Lord knows your heart and if you are sincerely seeking to know the truth then you will hear the truth.

John 3:5-7 Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not be amazed that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’

You must be physically born and your must be spiritually born to become a child of God and enter His kingdom. We are born spiritually dead and that is why we do not understand spiritual matters until we are born again. When we become born again then His Spirit enters into us and unites with our spirit and makes us become alive spiritually.  For this reason, no one can give us assurance of our salvation but the Spirit and He does assure our spirit that we have become His child.

Romans 8:16 The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God,

When you become His child, by becoming born again, you have now within you the “old man”, which is your flesh and the “new man” which is your spirit. If you allow the flesh to control you then you will experience death. If by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the flesh then you will live.

Romans 8:12-14 So then, brethren, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh— for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.

If you are a Christian then you will want to be led by His Spirit. If you are a Christian then you will not want to sin. If you will feed your spirit by spending time with the Lord through His Word and prayer and allow His Spirit to control you then you will experience life and peace.

Romans 8:5,6 For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace,

The Christian life is a process of maturing and becoming more like Christ. It takes time and obedience. We all fall but the Lord picks us up and helps us get back on track.

Proverbs 24:16 For a righteous man falls seven times, and rises again,

You will find that the more consistent you are in your quiet times with Him the smoother your Christian life will be. It is a “sweet life” to walk with the Lord. Don’t get discouraged. We all have to learn to walk with Him. There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ.

Romans 8:1 Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

He loves you and He remembers your sin no more!

Psalm 103:12 As far as the east is from the west,
So far has He removed our transgressions from us.

 

 

A Life that Seeks First

We all seek after something, whether it is fame, fortune, security, significance,purpose and meaning in life or all of the above, there is something deep within us that seeks. Oftentimes when we find what we are seeking it leaves us even more empty because many of the things that we think will make us happy are only an illusion, an emptiness that we realize is only vanity.

Ecclesiastes 4:4 I have seen that every labor and every skill which is done is the result of rivalry between a man and his neighbor. This too is vanity and striving after wind.

Many of the things that we seek are only a rivalry with another, a one up man ship or envy, coveting or jealousy. Again, it will not satisfy and we will only want more.

Ecclesiastes 5:10 He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves abundance with its income. This too is vanity.

You can become the richest person in the world and you still will not be happy. Your life will feel more empty than before because you will have gotten what you thought would make you happy.

Ecclesiastes 2:23 Because all his days his task is painful and grievous; even at night his mind does not rest. This too is vanity.

Your life will have been lived in vain if you do not seek what the Lord has designed you to seek. Your days will be filled with pain and your work will be grievous. You will not see meaning in many of the things that you do and some people will even have trouble sleeping at night.

Deuteronomy 4:29 But from there you will seek the Lord your God, and you will find Him if you search for Him with all your heart and all your soul.

If you do seek Him then you will find Him if you seek Him with all of your heart. If you seek Him, not only will you find Him and be satisfied, but you will receive everything else that you need to make you content as well. In seeking Him not only will you be content but you will understand that it is more blessed to give than to receive and your life will overflow with joy, satisfaction, contentment and life!

Matthew 6:33,34 But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. “So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

The Lord tells us that if we seek Him kingdom first and His righteousness all of the things that the nonchristians seek will be given to us and we will also need not have to worry about tomorrow. So, He says He will give us the meaning and security that we are seeking. He will give us what we need. He cares for us but He wants us to seek Him, so that we do not get caught up in the emptiness of wanting more and more and more.

Psalm 119:37 Turn away my eyes from looking at vanity, And revive me in Your ways.

Pray for revival first in your own heart. Revival comes when we quit seeking vanity and start seeking Him, that He might revive us in His ways.

A Life that Chooses Love

Life is certainly made up of choices and the choices you make determine your life. One of the most important choices that you make in life is the choice to love. This decision generally will come with those whom you do not “feel” like loving. We don’t really have to struggle to choose to love those who love us. It is those who we don’t want to or feel like loving that the choice must be made. However, as with all of God’s ways you will not regret it. You will be blessed , others will be blessed and the Lord will be glorified.

Matthew 5:47,48 If you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

It is interesting the the Lord makes the connection with greeting others with being perfect. He also references the fact that the Father is perfect. In other words, the Father loves even those who do not love Him.

John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.

The measure of your love is not how much you love those who love you but how much you love the unlovable.

Romans 5:8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

Not only does He love the unlovely but He loved us when we were His enemies.

Romans 5:10 For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.

The Lord wants to teach us to love. He wants to love through us. How this happens is that we first present to Him our bodies as a living sacrifice.

Romans 12:1 Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.

He then fills us with His Holy Spirit and He lives through us.

Galatians 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,

The Christian life is a relationship with the Lord where he takes our bodies and fills us with Himself, which He is Love and He is Truth, and He lives through us in the power of the Holy Spirit. When you learn to walk daily in His Spirit then you will be a fragrant aroma of Jesus Christ to believers and to a lost and hurting world.

Ephesians 5:2 and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma.

The sooner you learn that the source of love is not the object loved but God, who richly supplies us with all that we need. He will give you His love for others.

I Corinthians 13:13 But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the greatest of these is love.

 

 

 

A Life that is Created

Your life did not just begin in a random sort of way. You were planned and skillfully made in your mother’s womb. The Lord planned you before the foundation of the world and He chose your parents because He wanted you to be the unique and special person that you are. You are beautiful in His sight and there is nothing that you can do to make yourself more beautiful to Him.

Psalm 139:13 For You formed my inward parts;
You wove me in my mother’s womb.

You have no flaws because He does all things well. Whatever imperfections that you think that you have are marks of His ownership in your life. There is no one like you and nothing was done in accident.

Psalm 139:15 My frame was not hidden from You,
When I was made in secret,
And skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth;

Not only did He form you but He also knows all the days that you will live on earth. He knows all about you and He was pleased with how He made you.

Psalm 139:16 Your eyes saw my unformed body;
all the days ordained for me were written in your book
before one of them came to be.

You were made in His image. His image is not in physical appearance because that is temporal but His image is in the unseen and reveals the glory of God. The physical will pass away but His image in you will live on forever.

Genesis 1:27 God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.

Man is the only creature that was created in His image and yet man is the only one who has rebelled against his Creator. We don’t want to do what He has created us to do and that is to have fellowship with Him in a relationship with Him. We wanted to go our own way and the image of God was no longer seen the way He designed. Man violated
God’s Word and the word “violate” means to change, so we were changed and no longer showed His glory to the world. How can we be changed back so that we can reflect the image of God in our lives? There is only one way and that is to return to our Creator and be restored to Him. When this happens then we will become a new creation in Christ and the old things will pass away.

II Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.

Once we are restored then we will understand more fully His creation of us and how we are fearfully and wonderfully made. Our soul will know it and we will give thanks to Him.

Psalm 139:14 I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
Wonderful are Your works,
And my soul knows it very well.

Give thanks to Him today for how He made you. Give thanks for the unchangeable characteristics in your life. Give thanks for the parents he chose so that you would have the unique genetic makeup that you have. Give thanks to Him for making you in His image. Give thanks that you are beautiful.

 

 

A Life with Stability

We all long for stability in our lives. When your world is shaken it is a frightening feeling. The Lord promises His children stability so that no matter what happens in your life you will have a calmness within. You will not have to fear the times present nor the times future.

Isaiah 33:6 And He will be the stability of your times, A wealth of salvation, wisdom and knowledge; The fear of the Lord is his treasure.

The Lord will be your stability and His Word is the foundation of a life that will not be shaken when the instability comes.

Luke 6:46-48 “Why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? Everyone who comes to Me and hears My words and acts on them, I will show you whom he is like: he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid a foundation on the rock; and when a flood occurred, the torrent burst against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built.

The Lord tells us what to do so that we will not tremble or be dismayed.

Joshua 1:8,9 This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will act wisely. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

The Bible says that what the wicked fears will come upon Him. The wicked have a lot of fears because they do not seek the Lord not listen to His Word. They want to be in control but most of life is out of our control.

Proverbs 10:24 What the wicked fears will come upon him,
But the desire of the righteous will be granted.

The wicked flee when no one is pursuing. Guilt causes a person to run away from life and also to have unfounded fears.

Proverbs 28:1 The wicked flee when no one is pursuing,
But the righteous are bold as a lion.

The Lord says to be strong and courageous. Boldness, strength and courage is what should characterize our lives for we have One who is always with us and will never forsake us.

Hebrews 13:5 …for He Himself has said, “I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you,”

When we are stable in our faith then not only will we have much joy but we will bring joy to those who have taught us in the faith.

Colossians 2:5 For even though I am absent in body, nevertheless I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good discipline and the stability of your faith in Christ.

A Life that is Prayed For

If you belong to the Lord Jesus Christ then you are always being prayed for and the prayers are being answered. What an incredible comfort and joy. Also, you were prayed for before you were born. Jesus prayed for those who would believe in Him through those who share the Gospel with them. He prayed for you if you are His child.

John 17:20 I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word;

He sent His Holy Spirit who prays for you now. He knows your needs and He prays for you according to the will of God. He knows that we are weak in prayer. He covers for us.

Romans 8:26,27 In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words; and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.

Jesus also prays for us now. He is at the right hand of God and makes intercession for us.

Romans 8:34 …Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us.

He lives to make intercession for us and He saves us forever. His salvation begins now and then it is through all eternity.

Hebrews 7:25 Therefore He is able also to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.

The priesthood of Jesus is forever. The priest was to represent the people to God.

Hebrews 7:23 but Jesus, on the other hand, because He continues forever, holds His priesthood permanently.

Jesus offered up Himself for our sins, once for all. He is holy, innocent, undefiled, separated from sinner and exalted above the heavens and He prays for you.

Hebrews 7:26,27 For it was fitting for us to have such a high priest, holy, innocent, undefiled, separated from sinners and exalted above the heavens; who does not need daily, like those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the sins of the people, because this He did once for all when He offered up Himself.

The Lord Jesus Christ came to earth and was tempted in all things. He does understand our needs, weaknesses and temptations. He sympathizes with us.

Hebrews 4:14-16 Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Therefore…if these things are true, then He tells us what to do. He tells us to draw near to Him with confidence and so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. All of us have times of need and we constantly need His mercy and grace. He gives us incredible promises if only we will draw near to Him. As mentioned earlier, He saves those who draw near and He also says that we may receive mercy and grace. Last of all, He says that He, Himself, will draw near to you if you will draw near to Him.

James 4:8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Life of Belonging

One of the most precious truths that become ours when we become a Christian is that we belong to Him. We become one of His sheep and He becomes our Shepherd. Of course, we become His child in reality but the Lord uses the picture of the Shepherd and the sheep to show how much He cares for us. We all long to belong to someone and when we come to Him then we belong to the Good Shepherd who laid down His life for us.

John 10:11 I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.

Before we become a sheep we first become a lamb for a lamb is a baby sheep. Being the Good Shepherd, He cares tenderly for the lambs and before they learn to walk He carries them just as a mother tenderly carries her newborn babies close to her.

Isaiah 40:11 Like a shepherd He will tend His flock, In His arm He will gather the lambs And carry them in His bosom; He will gently lead the nursing ewes.

The Shepherd carries the newborn Christian close to Him until they become strong enough to learn to walk and then as a good parent, He teaches them how to walk. Just as a toddler must first learn to step out in faith, so too, the Christian learns to step out in faith. When a toddler falls, the parent comforts and encourages the young child to continue until they can walk on their own. So too, the Shepherd tends for the lambs until they grow and become sheep. As sheep they are still dependent on the Shepherd but it is in a healthy developmental way.

Psalm 23:1-3 The Lord is my shepherd,
I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside quiet waters.
He restores my soul;
He guides me in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.

Once the lamb has grown and is a sheep then the Lord guides them. They are not needy for He supplies what they need. That is the meaning of the sheep not being in want. He will make them, at times when it is needful, to lie down in green pastures so that they can be fed with green, nourishing grass. Notice, He does not make them lie down in the desert or on the weeds. No, He is a Good Shepherd and cares for the sheep. Also, the sheep need the still waters to be refreshed and so He leads them beside quiet waters so that their souls may be restored. Sometimes we don’t like the slower times in our lives but it is for our good. We need the down times so that we can be strong and refreshed for the busy times.

Psalm 23:4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I fear no evil, for You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

He will be with you always. He says that He will never leave you or forsake you. The Shepherd is always with you. Do not be afraid even when you walk through the valley of the shadow of death.

Hebrews 13:5 …for He Himself has said, “I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you,”

In His prayer for His disciples before He went to the cross Jesus prayed that they would be protected from evil. You do not need to fear evil.

John 17:15 I do not ask You to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one.

No one can take you from Him or pluck you out of His hand. You belong to Him. You are secure in Him forever.

John 10:27-30 My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.”

When you belong to the Lord then He wants you to “be longing” for Him. He is good and He longs to show His love to you.

Isaiah 30:18 Therefore the Lord longs to be gracious to you, And therefore He waits on high to have compassion on you. For the Lord is a God of justice; How blessed are all those who long for Him.

 

A Life that is Loved

Jesus loves me this I know for the Bible tells me so is the greatest truth in all the world. Is His love real to you? God loves you so much that He gave His only begotten Son for you so that you might live in His love for all eternity. His wrath is poured out on sin and so to take care of your sin He took the wrath that you deserved. We are all like that…we get mad at the sins of others, and yet, when we sin we need to know that He took the wrath that was intended for us. We deserve wrath but we have been given mercy and love.

John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.

When Jesus was here on earth He loved His disciples. He loved them to the end even though they failed Him He never failed them. In the same way, you will fail the Lord many times but He will never fail you. His love never changes.

John 13:1 …having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end.

Propitiation means that God was satisfied with what Jesus did for us on the cross. There is nothing we can do to cause Him to love us any more. He is satisfied. We can not add to His love for us neither can we take away from His love for us. He loved us and died for us, once for all.

I John 4:10 In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

He wants you to live in that love that He has for you. He calls you His “Beloved”, which means that He wants you to “be loved” by Him.

I John 4:9 By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him.

In Him alone is life. When you come into a relationship with Him then you begin to experience life. Eternal life begins the moment you believe in Him. The word “know” means “an intimate knowledge of” just as in the Old Testament when it would refer to a marriage relationship it would say they knew each other. They became one. In the same way, when you come to know the Lord then you become one with Him.

John 17:3 This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.

It is only in Jesus Christ that we can understand even a little of the greatness of love. His love is beyond our human comprehension and His ways are unfathomable. The more you know Him and His love for you then the more you will experience the riches of His grace and kindness in Christ.

Romans 11:3 Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways!

There is nothing that can separate you from His love and there is no one who can come between you and His love for you.

Romans 8:35-39 Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Just as it is written, “For Your sake we are being put to death all day long;
We were considered as sheep to be slaughtered.” But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

When you come to Him then goodness and lovingkindness will follow you all the days of your life.

Psalm 23:6 Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life,
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.