LIVE IT OUT!

4-14-2020. . . .LIVE IT OUT!

"This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you.   Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.  Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you."  (John 15:12-14 KJV) 

Love is about sacrifice!  The giving of ourselves for the benefit of others without expectation of return.  It is the one commandment Jesus gave; it is the one commandment we must diligently live out!  

PRAYER: Lord, thank you for your great love towards us.  Help us to follow your example and live out your commandment to love others as you have loved us!  Amen.

1 Cor 13:4-8. . . .Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.  Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.  Love never fails. NIV

COMMEND LOVE TO SOMEONE!

4-10-2020. . . .COMMEND LOVE TO SOMEONE!

"But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." (Rom 5:8 KJV) 

In our most unlovable and unacceptable state, God caused His love to stand and extend itself towards us.   Who around us is in need of that kind of love?  Although, they may be completely unacceptable and undesirable to us, just think about where we would be if we were left in that same state.   Commend love to someone today!  They may not want it, but they certainly need it!

PRAYER: Lord, where would we be had you not commended your love towards while we were in our worst condition.  Help us to commend our love to those around us who are so disparately in need of it.  Amen!

2 Thess 3:3-5. . . . And we trust the Lord that you are putting into practice the things we taught you, and that you always will.  May the Lord bring you into an ever deeper understanding of the love of God and of the patience that comes from Christ. TLB

A DO OVER!

4-8-2020. . . .A DO OVER!

"But God is so rich in mercy; he loved us so much that even though we were spiritually dead and doomed by our sins, he gave us back our lives again when he raised Christ from the dead-only by his undeserved favor have we ever been saved."  (Eph 2:4-5 TLB)  

Life does not offer us many "Do Overs."  We have to play the hand we have been dealt so to speak.  Christ however, by dying on the cross for our sins, has in effect, given us a 'Do Over!'   The question is, what will we do with it?

Prayer: Lord, thank you for giving us another chance.  Help us to make the best of it by being the best and doing the best we can!  Amen. 

Gal 2:20. . . .I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. KJV

POWER AND OPTIONS!

4-7-2020. . . .POWER AND OPTIONS!

"No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father."  (John 10:18 KJV)  

The power to lay down His life and take it up again hinged upon His choice to do so.  While love limited His options to one, let us be mindful that He had the power and options, but chose us!

Prayer: Lord, thank you for choosing us when You had the power and options to do something different. There is no greater love.  Amen!

 John 15:13. . . .Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. KJV

DON'T OPT OUT!

4-4-2020. . . .DON'T OPT OUT!

"Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done. (Luke 22:42 KJV) 

Submitting to God's perfect will is not always the easiest thing in the world to do.  In fact at times, it is down right challenging.  If we would have our way, we would opt for God to relieve us of the weight and responsibility of the choices He places before us.   But then, where would our blessing be?  What God wants for us is what's best for us and the greater good of others!  Don't Opt Out of It!

Prayer: Lord, what you want for us is best for us and for the greater good of others!   Help us not to opt out of it!  Amen.

Heb 10:7-10. . . .Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God.  Above when he said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered by the law; Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second.  By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.  KJV

ENDURE!

4-2-2020. . . .ENDURE! 

"Keep your eyes on Jesus, our leader and instructor. He was willing to die a shameful death on the cross because of the joy he knew would be his afterwards; and now he sits in the place of honor by the throne of God."  (Heb 12:2 TLB) 

Let us remember this week and always that the pain and agony Christ experienced for us was very real, yet for our sake, (the joy of presenting us faultless before the presence of His glory) He endured it!  Because He went through, He is able to help all those that are going through!   ENDURE!

Prayer: Lord, thank you for going through for us!  Strengthen now everyone who is going through that they might endure to the end.  Amen!

Heb 2:17-18. . . .For since he himself has now been through suffering and temptation, he knows what it is like when we suffer and are tempted, and he is wonderfully able to help us.  TLB

TRUST HIM!

4-1-2020. . . .TRUST HIM!

"The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.  I will call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies." (Ps 18:2-3 KJV)

When God is for us, all those that are against us are of little or no consequence!  Don't sweat it. . . .Trust Him!

Prayer: Lord, in you we trust.  We are safe and secure in spite of the existence of enemies.  Our trust remains strong in you!  Amen!

Rom 8:31. . . . What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?  KJV