"AWESOME GOD, AWESOME LOVE"

Good Evening to All!

The one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, perceiving that He had answered them well, asked Him (Jesus) , "which is the first commandment of all?
(29) Jesus answered him, "the first of all the commandments is: Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, is one.
(30) And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.' This is the first commandment.
(31) And the second, like it, is this: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no other commandment greater than these."
(32) So the scribe said to Him, "Well said, Teacher. You have spoken the truth, for there is one God, and there is no other but He.
(33) and to love Him with all the heart, with all the understanding, with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love one's neighbor as oneself, is more than all the whole burnt offerings and sacrifices." (Mark 12:28-33 NKJV)

This scribe, listening to Jesus, asked Him about a specific point of law. The scribes in Jesus time were lawyers, accustomed to mulling over and debating legal issues. This scribe probably viewed even God's law as a set of "rules" to be debated and argued about. The answer Jesus gave him was one of diplomacy. Rather than coming out with an answer that could have kept the scribe going and in a state of mind wanting to argue and debate, Jesus focused on love, not law.

He summed up ALL God's law in these two greatest commandments--love God first and completely, and THEN LOVE EVERYONE ELSE. If we look at these two commandments and think about them, they take care of every other commandment God has. If we have love for God first, then we would definitely put the second one into action. When we put the second one into action, that will cover the complete way a Christian is suppose to live and treat all others, as well as themselves.

Jesus' answer more than satisfied the scribe. He showed he understood, by his response. Under the law, offerings and sacrifices were made specifically made to thank and honor God, make amends for sins and accompany specific requests.

Love brings us to a deeper level and a deeper understanding with God. It strengthens our relationship with Him and makes it personal. Love makes living for God, obey His commandments much more important. We want to please Him.

Love makes having a relationship with God more important than just following rules and learning how to behave.

I think this is where a lot of people get mixed up. Tell me if this sounds familiar.

"I go to church every Sunday but I don't pay tithes because I need the money for my bills and the tithes just go to the preacher. I'm a good person because I don't lie, cheat or steal. I don't curse (that bad), at least I don't use God's name in vain. I help others when I can.

I don't like to read the Bible because I don't understand it, but I go to church and listen to the Pastor. I don't pray because God knows what's in my heart, so I don't have to say anything, but I love God, so I know I'm going to heaven.

This is just a little bit of what I have heard since I have become serious about my relationship with God. Believe it or not, I used to say some of the same things. UNTIL I got a hunger for God and His love. I started reading my Bible and realizing what He expects from me as a Child of God and as a Christian. He expects me to love Him the way He loves me.

He loves us ALL, because we are His creation, but that does not mean that we are all "Children of God". We are a child of God if we have a relationship with Him, if we have accepted Jesus as our Savior and been baptized in Jesus' name, and received the Holy Ghost. Now, before y'all get ready to "stone me" I am going by Acts 2:38, the Plan of Salvation.

God wants us to love Him passionately. We love our spouses with passion, and as much as I hate to admit it, there are times when our loves let us down. God will NEVER let us down. He will always be there for us. We should love Him with a passion ABOVE all others. I think a lot of the problem is we have the frame of mind, "out-of-sight, out-of-mind. If we will start looking at the world in a different light and start seeing God in everything He created, I truly believe we will have that passion.

I'm sure there are a lot of Pastors out there who know a lot more than I do, but the way I read and understand it, being a child of God, being a true Christian, and being saved should go hand in hand. If a Pastor reads this please let me know if I am wrong.

This being said, I must get back to my main thought. If we are to consider ourselves Christians then we need to do as a follower of Christ would do, and emulate Him. To do this we must read our Bible to get to know Him and find out what He wants from us. Which comes back to an intimate relationship with Him. If we will allow Him to be part of our lives completely and be part of His, meaning to want to do as He tells us, then adhere to the first two commandments will not be as hard as we suspect. Especially if we surrender to Him and let Him guide us. If we do this, then the other commands will fall into place.

We should focus on loving God and others with our thoughts, actions, and energy every day

Good Night to All and May God Bless!

Daily Inspirations from the NIV

Image by Windsors Child via Flickr

Good Evening to All!


I chose this picture to go along with this first verse because when is there a better time to be in solitude with God but in the quietness and the beauty of sunrise. To be able to hear God's "still small voice" whispering words of wisdom"?

Verses for Long Life
Blessed is the man who finds wisdom,
the man who gains understanding,
for she is more profitable than silver,
and yields better returns than gold.
She is more precious than rubies;
nothing you desire can compare with her.
Long life is in her right hand;
in her left hand are riches and honor.
Her ways are pleasant ways,
and all her paths are peace.

Proverbs 3:13-17

King James Version

Happy is the man that findeth wisdom,
and the man that getteth understanding.
for the merchandise of it is better than the merchandise of silver,
and the gain thereof than fine gold.
She is more precious than rubies:
and all the things thou canst desire are not to be compared unto her.
Length of days is in her right hand,
and in her left hand , riches and honour.
Her ways are ways of pleasantness,
and all her paths are peace.

To me, this verse on the surface means that it is more important to have Wisdom than precious jewels or money. Do not mistake knowledge for wisdom. Anyone can have knowledge. All they have to do is open a book and/or go to school. Wisdom on the other hand to me is acquired through different means. You get wisdom first and foremost by reading God's Word and praying that He will give you wisdom. Also, through experience, be it good experiences or bad. I have known people with an over-abundance of "book-smarts, but when it came to common sense or "life's wisdom" as I like to call it, they had none.

WISDOM is the Most Important thing a person could ever ask for. Look at King Solomon. He asked God to give him the wisdom to rule his people and look how he prospered. Of course, after a while he forgot and got greedy, then went crazy.

I know the Bible says that God wants us to prosper. I also believe that even though everyone likes to think He means money-wise, I think He wants us to prosper spiritually first, then the other will come. I'm not saying that He wants us all to stay poor, just that He wants our priorities to be in line with His first, and He doesn't need money. Not only that, but His Word says, But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus. He Doesn't Lie.

********************************************* *********************************************
Do not forget my teaching,
but keep my commands in your heart,
for they will prolong your life many years
and bring you prosperity.
Let love and faithfulness never leave you;
bind them around your neck,
write them on the tablet of your heart.
Then you will win favor and a good name
in the sight of God and man.
Trust in the LORD with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
'in all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make your paths straight.

Proverbs 3:1-6

King James Version
My son, forget not my law;
but let thine heart keep my commandments:
For length of days, and long life, and peace,
shall they add to thee.
Let not mercy and truth forsake thee:
bind them about thy neck;
write them on the table of thine heart:
So shalt thou find favour and good understanding
in the sight of God and man.
Trust in the LORD with all thine heart;
and lean not unto thine own understanding.
In all thy ways acknowledge him
and he shall direct thy paths.

What this verse puts on my heart is that God wants us to love Him, live for Him, keep his commandments ). God has many more commands as well as the "Ten Commandments". I can't help but believe that people are misguided if they succumb to the idea "I follow the Ten Commandments, I don't kill, or steal, or commit adultery, so I'm gonna go to heaven. Please search out your Bible. There is so much more to it than that. He gives us a lot of "commands" which He wants us to follow that don't necessarily sound like they would be a "heaven or hades" issue, but the idea of knowing that God wants us to do something and not doing it is the same as disobeying and disobedience is a sin. I will leave that thought. Also, when you love someone, such as your parents or your spouse, don't you try and make them happy in any way possible? You wouldn't deliberately hurt them by not doing as they ask, I'm sure. That's what I think God feels. He gave His life for us and if we can't do a little thing like love Him
and do what He asks, why should we be allowed to enter into His kingdom and live with Him for eternity? Can you imagine living with some one who was indifferent to you, or did the opposite that would make you happy for eternity? I wouldn't want to be in that household.

God wants us to lean on Him, depend on Him, ask Him for His advice. If we would do that everything would turn out so much better. He knows our past, present, and future. Therefore He knows what is best for us at any given time better than we do ourselves. Give Him ALL the Glory and Honor, for we are NOTHING without Him. We should ALWAYS remember that.

Good Night to All and May God Bless!

Love & Prayers,

Love, for the Day is Near

Image via Wikipedia

Good evening to all!


Daily Inspirations from the NIV

(8) Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.

(9) For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou love thy neighbour as thyself.

(10) Love worketh no ill towards his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.
King James Version Romans 13: 8-10

(8) Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves his fellowman has fulfilled the law.

(9) The commandments, "Do not commit adultery"Do not murder," "Do not steal, " "Do not covet," and whatever other commandments there may be, are summed up in this one rule: "Love your neighbor as yourself."

(10) Love does no harm to it's neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.
New International Version Romans 13:8-10

(8) Keep out of debt and owe no man anything, except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor, [who practices loving others] has fulfilled the Law [relating to one's fellowmen, meeting all its requirements].

(9) The commandments, You shall not commit adultery, You shall not kill, You shall not steal, You shall not covet ( have an evil desire), and any other commandment, are summed up in the single command, You shall love your neighbor as [you do] yourself.

(10) Love does no wrong to one's neighbor [it never hurts anybody. Therefore, love meets all the requirements and is the fulfilling of the Law.
Amplified Version Romans 13:8-10

Reference: Vs. 8 In the present context, owe no one anything primarily means respect and honor (see v. 7). No doubt money is included, but this passage does not prohibit borrowing, (Ps.37:12, Matt. 5:42) except to love: Love is a debt that is never paid in full.
Vs. 9 as yourself: This verse is not a command to love ourselves. It is a recognition that we do love ourselves, and commands us to love others just as genuinely and sincerely as we love ourselves.

Vs. 10 Love excludes murder, adultery, stealing, and lying (see v.9) . Therefore when we love, we automatically fulfill the prohibitions of the law. If we attempt to live by the law, we quickly discover that we are breaking the law (ch.7:5) but when we act in accordance to God's love, without being under the law, we fulfill it.

I was doing ok understanding these verses and the reference until this last reference of verse 10. If anyone can help me with it I would gladly appreciate it. I understand about the love excluding the above 4 sins, but it gets more confusing as it goes on. Thank you for your help.

In case you wondered where my post was last night, I had typed it, but somehow saved it as a draft rather than posting it. Like I said in the chat room on BlogNTweet Thursday just wasn't my day. Besure and check out the BlogNTweet link and say hi to Redhead Riter for me. It's really a neat place.

Good Night and May God Bless!

Love & Prayers,

God's Miracles and Bible Seeds

Image via Wikipedia

Good Evening to All!

I would like to elaborate on the word commandments. So many of us think of the word "commandments" as automatically meaning the Ten Commandments and that's the extent of it. We could not be further from the truth. According to Psalm 119:127, Commandments pertain to anything the Lord God has ordered. The word alludes to God's authority to govern His people. The commandments of God are positive and negative, specific and general, restrictive and permissive. Yet most important, they help a person to identity his or her way in a would that is filled with confusion, sin, and error. In other words, they are there to guide us on our journey through life to help keep us on the path to righteousness and Salvation. They are not all written in the form of "you will do this, or you better do that, or else. Some are written in a parable for example the "sower" , you reap what you sow. If you so discord, you will get discord back. If you treat people with love and respect, you will gain love and respect from others.

I have heard so many people say, "I don't read the Bible because I can't understand it. First of all, there are too many versions out there written in today's language to use that reason. Besides that, If you pray for God to give you understanding before you read, He will do so, and last but not least, the Bible isn't rocket science. Think of it as an instruction book for living. It is one of the most interesting books ever written. It's a romance novel, a history novel, a murder mystery, a how-to book, poetry and more all rolled into one.

According to Psalm 119:130, the entrance of God's Word brings light, which is something we all need. We do not always know or see what we need to do, and many times we do not recognize our own problems. We need God's light to understand ourselves and too see how we need to change and how we can cooperate with God to make things better. Reading God's Word is like looking in a mirror. It enables us to see what needs to be cleaned up in our lives.

Before I start Bible Seeds, I want to acknowledge two different blogs which have had miracles happen recently. My Charming Kids blog had their miracle in the form of Stellan's successful procedure. I truly believe he will be if not already completely healed, praise God.

The other is Yaya and Josh becoming parents! Be sure and check out their blog for the details! God is sooooo Great! His miracles never cease, we just don't look hard enough.

I am so happy for all the precious people involved in receiving these miracles!

God Bless you and may God keep His hand upon your families!

Bible Seeds Devotion:

Seeking His Face

Today's Seed: "I lift up my eyes to you, to you whose throne is in heaven. Psalm 123:1

Have you ever searched for an important face in the crowd? Perhaps this happened when you walked into a darkened movie theater or when you were lost in a mob at the stadium. You may catch a glimpse of the person, only to have them disappear again.

Is God's face equally hard for you to locate? Or is He standing out above the crowd, looking directly at you when your eyes meet His? And once your eyes lock on His, are you able to maintain a steady gaze to see into His heart and soul for your life?

The psalmist who wrote today's seed was looking for God. His hope was tied to his knowledge that if he looked hard enough, he would witness God's mercy in his lifetime. God never hides His face from us. He does not play peekaboo, discounting our present condition.

When we have difficulty seeing God, it is often because we have focused our eyes on someone or something else. Our point of focus shifts too easily. Material possessions, self-worth, and personal fulfillment--all considered "noble" causes in today's society--have clouded our eyes. Unfortunately, we fixate on God for shorter periods of time and are quickly distracted by these so-called causes.
God's Word repeatedly reminds us to seek His face. The greatest blessing of seeking God's face may be that he also has His eyes trained on each one of us.

Background Bulb: Psalm 34:15 says, "The eye of the Lord is upon them that fear Him, upon them that hope in His mercy." How He does this we may never know, but we can trust in the Almighty's ability to watch over us. His majestic throne is in heaven, not here on earth.

Weed & Water: How can we seek the face of the Lord? God reveals Himself through His written Word, through prayer, and through fellowship with Himself and other believers. Eventually we won't have to look so hard to find His face. And we'll find that He was there all along. So keep seeking!

Think about it:

* Think abut the last time you couldn't see God's face. Why couldn't you?

* What benefits or blessings will come to you as a result of lifting up your eyes and seeing God's face?

Prayer Pot:

Dear Lord, I confess that my eyes... (insert in what way you need help focusing on God and His Word.

This isn't the exact picture I was looking for, but it really has some relevance as according to the Bible, we are to believe as little children in the Word of God. Therefore a child planting or harvesting seeds or flowers definitely shows relevance to this post.

Look up, not in.

Good Night to All and May God Bless!

PJ

I don't know how formal I['m supposed to be about sources I use, so just in case, I use "Bible Seeds A Simple Study-Devotional for Growing in God's Word" and "The Everyday LIfe Bible (Amplified Version) Featuring Notes and Commentary by Joyce Meyer.