Category Archives: Christian Life

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GODLY LOVE RESPECTS OTHERS

Human Love

Do you love well? Do you love your neighbor? Do you have a heart that loves like Jesus did? Is His love in you? You know you should love your neighbor. You know Jesus loved the unlovely and forsaken. But do you?

I wrote this piece six years ago, but these last two weeks, with BLM protests around the world, I have thought more about the need for reaching out beyond the normal. White privilege is part of the international conversation right now. What if the narrative could be switched to a conversation about love, and while we’re at it, a conversation about respect.

Love and respect would change the world if allowed to take root. You respect people and things when you love well.

When you choose to only love people who are like you—who have the same views and religious beliefs, who are similar in practice and lifestyle—then your love has conditions. This goes for any race, country, or nation. Gulp. We must look at ourselves first. My honest answer to ‘Do I love well?’ would have to be, “Sometimes yes, and sometimes no.” I need to increase in my loving response to others. But I can truthfully say, it is always my heart’s desire.

Real Christ-love does not choose whom it is going to love, it just loves.

Christ’s love is a love that originates in the heart and soul. His love will not have fences, gates, barriers, or roadblocks. It will see others through a prism of gracious acceptance, kindness in thought, generosity in deed, care in action, love in selflessness, and hopefulness in outlook. However, love like this will not be foolish in attitude or commitment. You still have to be aware of abusive people.

Christ ate with a tax collector, a big no-no for a spiritual person. He saw the person first, not the other stuff. You, too, can hold a conversation with someone who holds a majorly, radically different opinion than yours and still enjoy them, which is because Christian love trumps your differing viewpoints.

Love loves, period. When Christ gets your heart, when you surrender your way to His way, then it is like your world pivots into a different dimension. You see life with a heart of love. Your reactions will be love-based rather than me first. This love needs to focus on Christ at all times. We do get distracted quite easily.

The truth is that all areas of our world need love. Love reaches out in other directions, for love is needed by more than just people. The natural world needs love. Plants and animals, when loved well, will flourish because they are treated with respect. When we love well, we will respect well; the two go together.

Love defines a loving person

Godly Love

Love develops as love grows.

Jesus’ love for others was pure. His love was not used as a formula for pressuring or manipulating souls. Nor did He view people as projects to be altered and shaped. How do I know this? It is apparent in how He interacted with all He met. He saw the heart of the person and their need. He walked around their need to enter from the back, where they lived in their heart-of-hearts. He would say, “What do you need?” though it was obvious. That is how He saw through the self-righteous people of the day, the Pharisees, as well.

Have you ever asked someone, “What can I do for you?” or “How can I help you?” or “What do you need?” This is an avenue that shows you care without any intimidation or implied pressure. Let the Spirit of God empower the effort.

I’ll never forget a church my then husband and I attended in a mountain village. On our first visit the minister’s wife came up to us and asked us if they could help us, if we had any needs they could meet, if we needed any assistance like clothing, food, or financial. Later, I realized how in-tune the church was with meeting folks’ needs, then and there. If someone had a prayer need, they’d stop the service, gather round the person, and pray for the need. I’d never seen anything like it, nor have I since.

How about you? I’m sure you question God’s love at times. Especially when you’re not at your best. Well, sorry to disappoint you, but it’s not about you in that regard, not about your performance or ‘good’ behavior, and not about His love not being there for you. God is always present. Always. And you simply can’t earn God’s love. Love is not a reward for good behavior. His love always is. Always.

You just struggle because you are human, and you go through things. You get fearful, disheartened, and look at self. The key to this, though, is to train yourself to look at Christ, to go to the Source of love, strength, and goodness. Give it to God, and then let the angst, problem, or situation work out in God’s way. By the way, this really works.

God loves because He is love. Love is part of God’s essence. You can ask God to help you to sense or be aware of His love in your reality. Then start looking for where He is at. You’ll find God everywhere, in a smile, a lovely flower, a kind word, a beautiful song, a friend’s communication, in a human being–someone you don’t even know. By seeing God in it all, you will be surprised. It will change you. It will help you love and then respect well.

Love, when allowed to flower, changes your heart, which changes your being, which causes you to love and respect the ‘all’ in your life. I know this sounds simplistic, too out-there, too impossible. What I do know, and you can know, is that the Christ life is about having the Christ light aglow in your life.

God’s love will change you, little by little, bit by bit. And that’s a good thing.

Photo by Stephen Leonardi, Unsplash

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YOU CAN COUNTER FEAR

Unsettling Fear

Dear Jesus, help me, I need help. I don’t know what to do. Please, I need You. Right now I need You. I can’t do this. I might embarrass myself. I’m scared.

Fear is a common denominator.

Fear drives behavior. Fear holds people back from being all they could be. What would you do differently if you weren’t so afraid? Think about it for a minute. What would you do if you weren’t so afraid to do it?

Fear is a form of opposite or oppositional vibes. Fear derails trust and welcomes doubt. Fear holds you hostage. Fear makes you feel less-than, incapable, or stupid. Fear drives your behavior in an uncomfortable way.

You can change the trajectory of your life by countering fear and its lies by thinking on what is true. The truth about yourself is that you are good enough and worthy. God made you worthy and capable like He did the rest of us.

Fear is often the emotion behind self-defeating thoughts. When it grips you, you can call it out, “I feel fearful.” Then you can calm yourself with a countering message. “I can do this. It’s fear telling me that I can’t.” That’s what I do and it helps more often than not.

God is in Control

Whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

Philippians 4:8

God has not given you a spirit of fear. He has given you a sound mind. Fear isn’t from God. God’s words can help dismantle fear’s grip on your mind and emotions to set you free of fear’s effects. It takes recognition of this fact, that fear’s having its way with you, and then having a counter response at the ready.

It can be as simple as saying “Help me, help me, help me” or “In Christ, I can do this.” You can get yourself all in a tizzy over things that are scary to you but are beyond your ability to control. That’s a waste of energy, but it happens. I should know, fearing the worst comes naturally to me.

God says, “Trust me.” Fear can’t ruin your life when you choose to give your troubles to God. He will help you. Fear can be an ongoing problem and sometimes you will get anxious. But fear doesn’t own you. You are in charge of your life. Need some help? Call on Father God. Ask Him to give you the words, thoughts, or answers.

There are levels fear just like there are levels of love. But sometimes a person can be in bondage to fear to the degree that it controls their mind, outlook, and self-perceptions. A coworker friend once gave me a booklet written by Norman Vincent Peale that had verses to memorize to counter the effects of the message of fear. I thought it especially effective.

You can think of verses of peace, trust, and hope. Write them down. Pray them out loud. Say them every day until they are imprinted in your mind. (This works well) Cause yourself to relax as you say them slowly and as many times as is helpful.

This is a start, there are many ways to address the bondage to fear that may overshadow your life. If this is you, don’t run from it, instead, run to answers.

At the Ready

Fear tries to master you until you counter it with a message of truth. At least, that’s how it works for me. I’ve trained my mind to trust in Jesus by picturing myself leaning on His Everlasting Arms. That picture helps me relax until my heart stops pounding. You come up with your own go-to protocol; a picture, verse, or sentence that you can recall when fears beset you.

One note: This post is not about major dangers. Some fears are magnified by real life situations that are fear inducing because of the danger factor. In that case, you need good counsel, an out, and prayer warriors in your corner, especially if any harm could come to you or you have to face something very unpleasant. I felt unnatural fear when I had to go to court in a custody battle. The presence of evil was real, the confusion was of the enemy. I needed prayer and my church family, friends, and my extended family were all praying.

Anyone can change their go-to reaction.