Girls To Grow

Interesting topics sometimes come up for discussion when you’re sitting around a table with your teenagers.

We were out eating frozen yogurt one night recently, and our daughters asked me why we’ve never watched superhero movies or tv shows together.  I’d never really thought about that!  I don’t have anything against superheros.  If we’d had boys, I imagine we’d have watched more of that type of media.  But I’d never realized my girls were interested in it!

I know enough about superhero stories to know that nearly every plot has a “bad guy” or an enemy that the superhero has to overcome.  He (or she) uses superhuman powers to defeat their foe.

You and I don’t typically have those kind of enemies, someone who’s actively working against us.  But we may have a person who seems bent on irritating us.  Maybe everything they say or do rubs us the wrong way.  It could be an unfriendly neighbor or co-worker we have to deal with.  Or perhaps it’s that person we thought was a friend until we found out she’d been talking about us behind our back.

As we continue in our series on love, we’re going to see what Jesus says about how we should treat our enemies.  It’s certainly not what our flesh is going to want to hear.

“But I say unto you which hear, Love your enemies, do good to them which hate you, Bless them that curse you, and pray for them which despitefully use you.

For if ye love them which love you, what thank have ye? for sinners also love those that love them. And if ye do good to them which do good to you, what thank have ye? for sinners also do even the same. 

“But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil.” ~Luke 6:27, 28, 32, 33, 35

Yes, all those characteristics we learned about love are to be shown not only to our friends and families, but also to those who make our life difficult.  Verse 27 even gives us some specific ways to show our love.

Do good to your enemies.

It wouldn’t be so bad if I could just ignore my enemies, but God says to do good to them.  That sounds like I should actively look for ways to make their life easier.

Bless your enemies.

I need to want good things for those who may not want good things for me.  That could involve me actually helping them out in some way or asking God to show favor to them.

Pray for your enemies.

While this is the last one in the list, I think it’s the key to the other two.  As I sincerely pray for a person I find hard to love, the Holy Spirit can give me the ability to bless them and do good to them.  I can ask God to watch over my enemies, guide them, and provide their needs.

I like how Jesus points out that loving our friends is no big deal – the unsaved find that easy to do.  But because we know Jesus as our Savior, we can go way beyond just loving our friends, and show love to our enemies.  Treating others well when they treat us well just feels right.  It might also feel “good” to do wrong to those who’ve treated us wrongly.  Yet that’s not how we’re to operate as Christians.

Notice that God doesn’t promise that when we show love to our enemies they’ll become our friends.  He tells us to “…love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again.”  We can’t control our enemy’s reaction to us, but we can control how we behave toward them.

He does say in Proverbs 25:21-22, “If thine enemy be hungry, give him bread to eat; and if he be thirsty, give him water to drink:  For thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his head, and the Lord shall reward thee.”  God sees and knows our hearts and our actions toward our enemies.  He knows that it can be difficult to follow this command, and the Bible says that He will reward us.

Once again, God is our greatest example.  “…For He is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil.”  God loves all those He created, and shows great grace and mercy even toward those who reject Him.  We may categorize certain people as the worst sinners we know, yet they receive innumerable kindnesses from God every day.

And you know what else?  I receive all those kindnesses, too!  Even though I’m His child, I fail at loving my enemies – and many other commands, quite often.  Yet He loves me, and forgives my many failures every day.

I think loving our enemies is usually outside the realm of our human possibility.  Here’s where the Holy Spirit steps in.  It’s the fruit of the Spirit being produced in our lives as we walk with God that overcomes our human nature, and lets that love flow through us – even toward our enemies.

Related posts:
4 Ways We Can Love Like Jesus
How Can God Use Me Today?
Finding Our Ministry Right Where We Are

Any time you’re learning a new skill, it’s nice to have someone who already knows how to do that thing show you how it’s done.

When I was in college studying to be a teacher, we sat in various elementary classrooms and watched teachers teach their students.  I remember one young woman who was exactly the type of teacher I wanted to be.  She managed her classroom well, and made the basic subjects she was teaching seem interesting.  Her manner was gentle, yet firm, and it was evident that she cared about her students.  She was a wonderful example of an excellent teacher.

As we talked about earlier in this series, God’s love is the greatest love we can know.  And when it comes to loving our fellow Christians, Jesus set the example for us while He was here on earth.  He showed us what it looks like to love each other.

In John 13, Jesus is talking with His disciples.  He’s getting ready to be crucified, so will be leaving them here on earth while He returns to heaven.  Here’s the instruction He leaves them.

“A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.  By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.” ~John 13:34-35

He says it again in John 15:12.

“This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you.”

This is a direct command from Jesus.  While we’re instructed elsewhere to love everyone (i.e., Jesus said the second commandment is to love your neighbor as yourself), today I want to look at ways we can love fellow believers.  In both John 13 and John 15, Jesus is specifically addressing those who followed Him.

Jesus says that they are to love others in the same manner that He loved them.  So how did He love them?  Here are just a few ways.

1.  He physically served them.

“He [Jesus] riseth from supper, and laid aside his garments; and took a towel, and girded himself.  After that he poureth water into a basin, and began to wash the disciples’ feet, and to wipe them with the towel wherewith he was girded.” ~John 13:4-5

Honestly this may be the easiest of these ways to show love!  We can cut someone’s grass, take them a meal, clean their house, drive them to a doctor’s appointment, or babysit their children.  These are the visible, outward signs of our love.

2.  He prayed for them.

“I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word….I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine.” ~John 17:6, 9 [The entire prayer Jesus prayed for them is in verses 6-26.]

Telling someone you’ll pray for them, and then actually following through are two different things.  When someone asks me to pray for them, I try to do it immediately.  I also try to write it down on my monthly prayer list when I get it out the next morning.  That way I’m reminded daily to take their need to God.

I have a couple of friends who are so good about following up with me on what I’ve asked them to pray for.  That is such an encouragement to me!  It makes me want to do the same with others.

3.  He loved them in spite of their failings.

“Now before the feast of the passover, when Jesus knew that his hour was come that he should depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end.” ~John 13:1

Jesus knew that in a short time Peter was going to deny Him, and all the other disciples would flee.  Yet John tells us that “He loved them unto the end.”

Other believers are going to disappoint us.  We know they’re not perfect, yet we sometimes seem to expect Christians to always do and say the right thing.  That would be nice, but it’s just not reality.  It’s up to us to exercise grace and forgiveness, even if we feel we’ve been wronged.

4.  He loved sacrificially.

“As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep.” ~John 10:15

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

I’m not suggesting that we’ll have to die for another church member.  However, we may find opportunities to sacrifice for others. Maybe we give money anonymously to meet a need.  Perhaps we give up time we’d planned for something else, or allow ourselves to be inconvenienced so that we can show our love for that person.

I have a lot of growing to do in this area!  We can have no greater testimony, whether among believers or non-believers, than that we demonstrate love to others.  Jesus says that it’s how people will know that we’re true followers of Him.

Can you think of some other ways that Jesus loved His disciples?  If so, please share with us!

Related posts:
5 Ways to Show Grace to Others
Finding Our Ministry Right Where We Are
God Has a Purpose for You Today

A number of things in life are simple, but not easy.

For example, I recently had blood work done, and found out that I have high cholesterol.  The doctor said I need to eat a diet lower in fat.  Sounds simple enough, but boy, it’s not easy!  Eating oatmeal instead of pancakes and bacon, or choosing spinach salad over pizza for lunch isn’t bad for a few days, but when that homemade cinnamon roll is on a plate right in front of me, it’s hard to make the healthier choice!

The same could be said of making wise financial decisions.  We know we should save that extra money from our paycheck, but who can resist that new dress that’s on a really good sale?

So it is with our spiritual life.  The basics are often simple, but not easy.  I think loving God is exactly that way.

If we want to know how to show God that we love Him, the answer’s found in John 14:15.

“If ye love me, keep my commandments.“

Sounds pretty simple.  And in case that verse doesn’t convince you, 2 John 6 gives the same message.

“And this is love, that we walk after his commandments.“

In Tuesday’s post, we talked about loving God being the first commandment.  Now it’s time to show our love for Him by our actions.

If I love God, I’m going to do what He says.  Why?  Because I love Him and desire to please Him.

Following God’s commandments sounds simple, but it definitely isn’t easy.  Many of them go against what our flesh naturally wants to do.

In other words, are we always going to like His commandments and what they tell us to do?  I don’t think so – any more than my children are always happy about doing what I ask them to!  Let’s say I call them to set the table for supper when they’re in the middle of reading an exciting book.  Are they eager to put the book down and come to the kitchen?  No.  Or maybe I tell them that their rooms have to be cleaned before they go to the youth activity on Saturday.  Are they excited about that “command”?  Not a good kind of excited, anyway!

Sometimes it’s going to be difficult to keep His commandments.  What about “Love not the world”?  Don’t I sometimes allow myself to be swayed by a worldly influence?  That movie, book, song, etc. can be so entertaining…yet I know that it’s drawing my heart away from God and towards the world.

How about “love your enemies”?  Honestly, I’ve found that it’s not so much my enemies that I have a hard time loving.  But if anyone hurts my children in any way or says something unkind about my husband, I don’t think I can ever love that person!  They’ve now become my enemy.  Yet God tells me to love them.

And for one more example, how about where we’re told in Philippians 4 to “Rejoice in the Lord always”?  Does God really mean always?  Like when I have a flat tire and end up stuck on the side of the road when my husband’s out of town?  Or when a child gets sick the morning we’re supposed to leave for vacation?  I’m going to have a hard time keeping that commandment some days!

But then again, isn’t that the point of this whole series?  Love is a fruit of the spirit.  I can’t produce love – or follow God’s commandments – in my own strength.  The Holy Spirit helps me to do both as I yield control of my heart to Him.

Let’s ask the Holy Spirit to help us today to love God with our actions.  Following His commandments shows God – and others – that we love Him.

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Top ten lists are very popular.  If you do an online search, you can find one on almost any topic.  Today I’d be likely to click on an article that says “Top Ten Christmas Gifts for Teenage Girls” or “Princess Kate’s Top Ten Style Tips.”  (I’ve been a royal family follower since Princess Diana came on the scene when I was a girl!)

In the passage below, a scribe came to Jesus wanting to know what the number one commandment was.  Jesus actually gave him the top two.

“And one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, and perceiving that he had answered them well, asked him, Which is the first commandment of all?  And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord:  And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.  And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.  There is none other commandment greater than these.”  ~Mark 12:28-31

Love God.

That’s the number one commandment for me to follow.

I remember I once started studying the Bible, looking for commandments to follow.  After all, as we’ll look at later in this series, Jesus said if you love me, you’ll keep my commandments.  I do love Him, so I want to know what His commandments are so that I can do them.

Yet it’s clearly spelled out for us in this passage.  The greatest commandment is to love Him.

This love I’m to have for God involves my all.  The word “all” is included before each of the words heart, soul, mind, and strength.  So every part of me should be engaged.  I should be completely consumed with loving God, fully committed to it.

So what might it look like to love God to these extremes?

My heart.

We love God in our motives and intentions.  Every thing we do should be motivated by our love for Him.  Admittedly, we’re not always going to do that perfectly, but that’s our goal.

I Samuel 16:7 says that man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord sees the heart.  It’s such a sweet thought to me that even when I fail again at doing the right thing, God knows my “want-to.”  By the help of the Holy Spirit, I can turn those “want-to’s” into following through on His command to love Him above all else.

My soul.

The deepest part of us – our feelings and emotions – are to be fully involved in loving God.  This is our spiritual side that worships and praises God.

I believe music is a great tool here.  “Psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs,” as Paul says in Ephesians 5:19, are a way to express my love for God to Him, and to others.  Have you ever had tears come to your eyes when a particular song touches your soul?  I think it’s a foretaste of heaven when we seize those moments to praise God.

Prayer fits here, too.  All too often I find myself rushing to my prayer requests instead of taking time first to tell God I love Him.  Do you say that to God often?  I know how much I like hearing my teenagers tell me they love me, and I’m convicted about making sure I tell God, my Heavenly Father, that simple phrase.

My mind.

We should love God in our thoughts.  A great method for doing this is meditation.  We can meditate on God’s character, His promises in His Word, the way we’ve seen Him act faithfully in our lives.

It’s our minds that all too often can lead us away from loving God to loving possessions or people or our ambitions or just our own selfish way above Him.  That leads me to consider how I’m spending my time.  What am I filling my mind with most days – things that point me to God or things that turn my focus to the world around me?

My strength.

Let’s love God with all that we have.  We don’t want to be weak in showing our love for Him, to give up easily when difficult times come.  Our love for God needs to endure, to not shrivel up at the first sign of a trial.  It’s going to take courage to love God, to face down attacks from Satan – and even our own flesh.

It comes down to a single-hearted focus.  Our love can’t be divided.  We want to love God above all else – all people, all things…even above myself.  Loving God first means submitting every part of myself to Him and allowing His will to direct my life and my decisions.

Related posts:
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This is like one of those stories you might hear from a grandparent about the “good old days…”

Back when my husband and I were dating (almost 30 years ago!), cell phones weren’t a thing.  (Strange, but true.)  We started dating our freshman year of college.  Since I lived in Virginia and he lived in Georgia, we were separated for most of the summer.  There was such a thing as long distance calling in those days, and it cost money, so we typically only talked on the phone once a week.

However, we wrote each other letters several times a week.  My husband was a good letter writer.  I’d be so excited when I got home from working my summer job and found a letter in the mail from him!  Of course I’ve saved those love letters all these years, because they’re a sweet and visible reminder of his love.

I don’t know if people who are “in love” still write each other letters or not, but my husband (then boyfriend) taking the time to sit down and write a long letter was one way that I knew that he loved me.  He wanted to share what was going on in his life, and wanted to hear about what was going on in mine.

While it’s a special blessing to be loved by another person, there’s no greater example of true love than God’s love for each one of us.

In Tuesday’s post we defined love.  Today, let’s break down a very famous verse that tells us about how God loves us.

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” ~John 3:16

Here’s what I see about love in that verse.

It’s for everyone.

Your gender, race, nationality, political party, personality, good works, past sins  – none of that matters when it comes to God’s love.  He created every human being, and His love extends to all.  There are no conditions I have to meet to be eligible for His love.

It’s a great love.

The verse says, “For God SO loved the world…”  God’s love isn’t a shallow feeling or a passing fancy.  His love for us is strong and led Him to make an incredible sacrifice for us.

Ephesians 2:4 says, “But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us…”  God’s love is abundantly merciful, deep and abiding, and is there for us whether we feel it in every moment or not.

His love is a gift. 

I can’t earn it, and I’ll certainly never be worthy of it.  God freely gives His love with no strings attached.

His gift was the greatest sacrifice.

God had only one Son, and He willingly sacrificed Him to a death on the cross for sinners.  Love is shown by action, and there’s no greater way God could have shown His love than by sending Jesus to die for my sins.

I John 3:16 says, “Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us…”  We know God loves us because He literally gave Himself for us.

His love requires a response from me.

While God’s love is a gift, I have to be willing to accept that gift.  When I believe that Jesus died for me and I accept Him as my Savior, I receive the full benefits of salvation.

God’s gift of love gives me everlasting life.

God wants me to live with Him forever!  He loves each one of us so much that He allows all who trust in Jesus to live with Him in heaven for all eternity.

Our church’s children’s program that I work in on Wednesday nights has John 3:16 as its theme verse.  Our group will say it together from memory often – and, sadly, I sometimes repeat the words without really thinking about their meaning.

May I never take God’s great love for granted!!  If I’m looking, I can see it manifested in my life every day.

Related posts:
5 Truths About God’s Love for Me
What Does It Mean to Delight in the Lord?
4 Ways You Can Live as a Philippians 2 Christian Woman Today