Category Archives: Love

Just Do It

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Technical support workers will tell you most problems with computers could be avoided by following the instructions.  When the manual says to do X and our natural instinct is to do Y, we humans have a tendency to follow our own ideas.  Then our stuff breaks and we call tech support.  After 30 or 40 minutes listening to a recording tell us how important our call is, when the support person answers, most of the time they will lead us through the process of following the instructions.

Same thing applies with following Jesus.  For example, you have a terrible conflict with someone at church and go to your prayer place to “call up Tech Support.”

“This is God; how can I help you?”

“____________ is such an unpleasant person and I can’t get along with them.”

“How did you handle it?  Did you go to them by yourself and discuss it?”

“Well, no, I talked it over with my friends at Bible study.”

“You gossiped?”

“Me, gossip?  Oh, no; it was just explaining the situation for a prayer request.”

“Nope, that’s gossip.  It messes everything up.  That’s why it says don’t do it in the instructions.   How about returning a blessing fot their unpleasant behavior, have you tried that?”

“Are You serious?  A blessing?    How’s that going to help?”

“Give it a shot; it’s in the instructions…”

And so forth…

When people read computer instructions and then ignore them, chances are pretty good they are going to be waiting on hold for a half-hour for customer service to pick up.  It’s just as true with the Bible.  That’s why they should post these words over the exits from the church as a reminder to folks on the way out:

22 Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.  (James 1:22)

Firm in What?

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Wars and rumours of war aren’t indicators of Jesus’ return.  Neither are famines and earthquakes.  Jesus called those things “the beginning of birth pains.”  First labor pains ordinarily indicate the start of an unstoppable progression of events but not the imminent conclusion of them.  So what indicators did Jesus say would tip us off the time was drawing close?   Among other signs, Jesus included this troubling thought:

 12 Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold,  (Matthew 24:12)

The more we encounter wickedness, the more  tempted we are to respond in kind.  The recent sniping murder of Dallas policemen is a sad case in point.  Somebody thought, “Enough is enough; I’m going to make someone pay.”  That’s an extreme example.  Maybe you would never go that far.  But Jesus taught us to actually respond in the opposite way:

27 “…Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.”  (Luke 6:27b-28)

When most people find it too tough to respond to wickedness with love, that is a sign the end times are drawing to a close, that Jesus is coming soon.  What do you think?  Are we there yet?  Has the love of most grown cold?  If you had to make the call, based on your own attitudes, what would you say?  For me, that is a sobering question.

But don’t give up!  No matter what, don’t abandon love.  That first quote above is only the beginning of Jesus’ sentence.  Here’s the whole thing:

12 Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold,  13 but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved. (Matthew 24:12-13)

Stands firm in love.

Just One

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If you had to pick just one rule to live by, one rule to teach your kids, which one would you choose?  Jesus picked this one:

And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment.  (Matthew 22:37-38)

God is not emotionally needy; He is not hurt or impoverished by our failure to love Him.  So what’s the deal?  Why is this the most important one?  Let’s start with this: If we could truly wrap our minds around the reality that we have personally been created by an infinitely superior Being, Who designed and created the universe, Who knows us, cares for us and loves us, if we could hold that truth present in our consciousness, our natural response would be wholehearted love for Him.  Anything less would be petulant rebellion.  

Presumably, as we obey the command to love God with our all, it has the effect of bringing us closer to the full realization of Who He is and how He loves us.  Aligned with that truth, we are more in tune with the rest of His design.

But how would such love be expressed?  A Hallmark moment wouldn’t suffice. As we are drawn into a closer relationship of love with God, it spills over and is naturally expressed in our love for others.  That is why Jesus added this:

And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”  (Matthew 22:39-40)

Simply put, if you could truly obey the first command, you would find yourself obeying the second, and would not need to worry about all the others.  

All the Difference

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Nobody told us. Five minutes later and the hospital would not have billed us for that whole day. But saving money was the furthest thing from our minds as we prepared for the birth of our first child. When our daughter was born, nothing could have diminished our joy and thankfulness, not even being billed a whole day for 5 minutes. There was new life in our family and new hope.

Thankfulness changes the game. Instead of focusing on the bad stuff, your thoughts are filtered through appreciation for what’s good. It’s the old “half-full” instead of “half-empty” attitude.

For those who follow Jesus, it is no mere mental trick. Our thankfulness is grounded in the new life born in us, the very life of Jesus.  New life comes with absolute confidence for the long haul.  Our cups, more than half-full, run over!

Here’s the whole quote we have considered in three posts. God’s desire is for you to enjoy each of these.

Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.  (1Thessalonians 5:16-18)

For Sure

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Here’s the truth for Ann Maree, things she knows with certainty in Heaven:

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures:
he leadeth me beside the still waters.
He restoreth my soul:
he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil: for thou art with me;
thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies:
thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life:
and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

                                                           (Psalm 23)

Turned Heads and Hearts

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Come Sunday, it will have been a year, a tough year.  A year ago today, my wife, Ann Maree, was taken by ambulance to Hospice for her final struggle.  Understandably, I spend a lot of time thinking back.  Our 50 plus years of courtship and marriage were way too short.  We had some wonderful times.  We also went through some pretty big changes.

The best and most powerful change came as we individually discovered the truth about Jesus and welcomed His Spirit into our souls.  At first, the changes were fresh and exhilarating.  Gradually that excitement evened out into a satisfying and fulfilling joy.  Worry was exchanged for contentment.  There was a dramatic shift in how we saw life in this world.

As an example, Annie was good lookin’.  Yes indeed, she turned heads.  But strangely, that physical beauty was, for her, a source of insecurity.  Maybe you can relate.  But when Jesus showed her how much God loved her, that anxiety was gradually laid to rest.  It was transformed into a thorough sense of inner beauty and inner peace.  Heads still turned, but that wasn’t of as much importance.  Recently, I came across this, underlined in her Bible:

Your beauty … should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight.  (1 Peter 3:3a & 4b)

When folks remember Ann Maree, most of the time they talk about how she had “…the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit…”

Yes indeed.

Too Much, Part 2

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Cramming for a final is like trying to put packing peanuts back in the box.  Put one back and two or three pop out.  Our brains can only hold so much.  There are some things too vast to fit in such a limited space.

Jesus’ love is one of those.  (If you haven’t read the previous post, scroll down to read it first)  It’s too much to comprehend, without a supernatural power boost from the Spirit of God.  But God gives that boost, not so we will have more information.  It’s not so we will have the answers to pass a test.  It’s for something that surpasses the mere possession of more facts.  Paul prays for believers to be strengthened to more fully understand the enormity of Christ’s love, SO THAT THEY MIGHT…

…  know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.  –   (Ephesians 3:19b)

Read that again.  Let it sink in.  The more we know the love of Jesus, the more we become filled with the essence of God!   The “fullness of God” is manifested in the astonishing love of Jesus.  And we are meant to be filled to the brim with His “fullness,” so our lives would demonstrate His love, His essence, too.

If you are thinking, “No way I could ever pull that off,” remember, this is a prayer for God to do it!   And Paul wraps up this prayer with this encouragement:

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us,  to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.  –  (Ephesians 3:20-21)

Too Much

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Ever feel like your head is about to explode?  Maybe it was in a class or seminar where the information was  shooting out of a fire hose.  I’ve felt that way, trying to wrap my mind around what Einstein was thinking, or figure out why my computer wasn’t working.  The first time I saw the Grand Canyon, I just couldn’t comprehend the size and scope of it.  It was too much to take in.  At times like that, it would be nice to push a button to get a mental power boost.

There’s a prayer for that kind of a power boost in the Bible.  The prayer is for the power to comprehend the vast love of Jesus!  It’s too vast, too much.  There’s no way to take it all in, without a supernatural power boost from the Spirit of God.  Check it out.  I’ve highlighted the main ideas in the prayer, but don’t dance lightly over the other stuff; it’s all important and all amazing:

I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, …  (Ephesians 3:16-18)

The idea is that the love of Jesus is so immeasurable, it would make your head explode.  It’s too much to comprehend without spiritual help, even for those who, by faith in Jesus, have been “rooted and grounded” in His love.  We are like seedlings who cannot imagine becoming a flower.  Or a tree.

Perhaps that is why some reject Jesus, saying His crucifixion is too cruel to be required by a good God.  Perhaps they only see the cruelty because it is impossible to comprehend the love.

More on this next time…

The Scam and The Truth

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Someone says to send him 20 bucks and God will make you rich. Don’t believe him; he is a lying sack of garbage.  He’s taken a beautiful truth in the Bible and twisted it for his own evil, greedy purposes.

But what is the “beautiful truth” and can we trust it?  Pay attention to what this says and what it does not say:

Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.  (2 Corinthians 9:6-8)

If you give generously, will God make you rich?  No, He will “bless you abundantly,” so you will be able to be more generous (“abound in every good work”).  That is, if your motive is to bless someone else, not to get anything back for yourself – a reward, public notoriety, brownie points with God, etc.   When we give with the right attitude, it really is true that God blesses us – abundantly!

Check it out for yourself.  Take that 20 bucks I just saved  you and ask God to show you how you might use it to truly bless someone, as an expression of His grace.  Maybe He will show you someone who needs the money.  Maybe, someone who is lonely and could use coffee and conversation.  The possibilities are unlimited.  It’s an exciting experiment, one which God encourages us to to try.  The more you see how it works, the more it does work.  You learn to trust it and enjoy it. 

When I want to water my lawn, I use the sprinkler that most efficiently passes the water along to the grass.  If one of the sprinklers blocks the flow, I throw it away.  God uses His people to pour out tangible grace to those in need.  Those who understand their role as conduits of His generosity, receive more from Him to pass along.  Those who hoard, receive less and miss out on what could have been an exhilarating dance with God. 

Have fun…

You Can’t Say That…

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Women are weaker than men.  Are you shocked?  Is it even legal to say such a thing?  Is it sexist?  My dictionary says that sexism is arbitrary   stereotyping of men or women, based upon their gender.  But when you describe a difference between men and women that is grounded in reality, it is no longer arbitrary.  Over the course of my life, I’ve discovered some very wonderful differences women have from men.  And, women are, in fact, weaker.  That is why they compete separately in athletics.

But does being weaker make women lesser?  Not according to this verse in the Bible:

Likewise, husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel, since they are heirs with you of the grace of life, …  –  (1 Peter 3:7a)

Husbands are instructed to be understanding of their wives and to show them honor as the weaker partner since, as co-heirs  of God’s grace, they are equals.  Weaker, but equal: how can that be?  Or, perhaps more to the point, why would that be?  Is it possible that women’s weakness makes them uniquely equipped for a special function?  And also, men, in their strength?

My guitar is very fragile.  It must be fragile in order to resonate with a beautiful tone.  So, I protect it with a tough case.  The case is stronger but it is not better or more important.  When I want to play music, most of the time I use the guitar, not the case.  But without the case’s protection, my guitar would have been destroyed long ago.  Which is more important?  It depends on whether you are talking about music or security.  The guitar and the case need one another and work together in their separate roles.

As do women and men. “They” say we can’t say such things.

“They” are wrong.