Tag: inspiration

Christian

I Teach Kids, God Teaches Me

Cindy Dawson

Some people just don’t deserve what you did for them! They’re so ungrateful!

Today, I gave a science test at the Junior High School. I thought the kids would do really well because I had worked hard to prepare them. I created a Jeopardy Game for them to play for review (which wasn’t free, by the way). And I spent considerable time thinking of a better way to explain the concepts. You could say I gave it my all, above and beyond! I knew they would do well.

Only they didn’t!

Some of them were bubbling in random answers without reading the question! (Are you kidding me?!) 

Others were looking out the window and thinking about something else. (What’s wrong with these kids?!)

I knew that most of them had not studied and didn’t care if they passed or not. By the time I gave the test to 4 different classes, each set of grades worse than the class before, I was angry and frustrated. (Why should I work harder than they do? I’m tired of this! I don’t care anymore! They can all fail for all I care!! I’m done!)

On the drive home, I mumbled, “Lord help me to have a better attitude.” (and not with a lot of passion).

Right away He reminded me of how patient He was with me when I didn’t care what He had done for me.

What can I say to that? He died for me, and I went about living like I didn’t know it, only I did know it. Yes, there was a time when I did this. When I was at my worst, I’m sure He had angels watching over me to keep me alive until I came to my senses. He was patient with me. He never stopped loving me. And He certainly never said, “I’m done with her!”

After today, I better understand His love, forgiveness, and mercy. He never said, “I don’t care anymore.” He just kept loving me, interceding for me, and calling my name. For this I am eternally grateful.

Let us follow His example, showing His love to those He puts in our path each day.

Scriptures

“David said to Gad, “I am in deep distress. Let us fall into the hands of the Lord, for his mercy is great; but do not let me fall into human hands.” 2 Samuel 24:14

“He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy.” Titus 3:5

“But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him…” Psalm 103:17 KJV

“The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” 2 Peter 3:9 NIV

“Who is like the Lord our God, the One who sits enthroned on high? He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap” Psalm 113:5,7 NIV

“He remembered us in our low estate. His love endures forever.” Psalm 136:23 NIV

“And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.” 1 John 4:16 NIV

“The Lord is good to all; he has compassion on all he has made.” Psalm 145:9

“Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.” Jesus

With Love, 

Cindy

This Is My Journey Unscripted.

Do you want to become a Christian? Click this link to learn more: Who Is Jesus?

realchristianwomen.blog  

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Christian

My First Love

Cindy Dawson

I was stopped in my tracks as I read the letter to the church in Ephesus (Revelation 2:1-6).

1″I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked people, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. 3 You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary … 6You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.”

It sounds like a strong church! But one thing is going to bring them down. What is it?

4 “Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first.5 Consider how far you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place.”

How had they changed? What things did they stop doing?

The Amplified Bible says, “… you have left your first love [you have lost the depth of love that you first had for Me].”

When Jesus was asked, “What is the greatest commandment?” he replied,

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment.” Matthew 22:37

I began to ponder this. How do we love the Lord with all our heart, soul, and mind? Would we even know if we, like the Church at Ephesus, left our first love? I’m sure the Ephesians thought they loved the Lord with all their hearts. After all, look at all the great things they were  doing. But something must have changed.

I have searched the Scriptures, prayed, and asked other Christians, seeking the answer to this question: What does it mean to love the Lord with your whole heart?

Is it an emotion? An act of our will? Obedience? Praise?

Is it possible that the Ephesians went about the activities of church life, minus the passion of one who has been forgiven? Did they forget how thankful they once were for His forgiveness and love?

I can only infer that as we go about the business of “church”, it is possible to do many good things, yet forget how we first loved Him.

Perhaps now we are busy doing (like Martha) instead of sitting at His feet (like Mary).

The importance  of “loving God with all my heart” has been on my mind for several weeks. I ask myself, Do I love Jesus with all my heart? And more importantly, what does Jesus think?

I started thinking about how I show love to my children. For one thing, I tell them – a lot!. So last night I started my prayer like this:

Lord, I love you. I love you with all my heart and soul and mind. Thank you for forgiving me of my sins. I remember how on fire I was for you when I first experienced the forgiveness that “washed me white as snow” and “removed my sins “as far as the east is from the west”.

 My heart was flooded with peace because the heaviness of my soul, the anguish of guilt vanished.. I remember how I devoured the Scriptures as I discovered your promises. Give me a heart like David, whose Psalms reflect his deep love for you …..

So let us think back to how we first loved Him. Let us ask ourselves, Do I tell Him that I love Him everyday? And let us ask Him to help us to never forsake the love we had at first.

Scriptures

 For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is his love for those who fear him;

as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.

As a father has compassion on his children,
    so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him; Psalm 103:11-13

Though your sins are like scarlet,
They shall be as white as snow;
Though they are red like crimson,
They shall be as wool. Isaiah 1:18 

With Love, 

Cindy

This is My Journey Unscripted.

Click this link to learn more about Jesus: Who Is Jesus?

realchristianwomen.blog 

Christian

Why Do I Blog? To Be Followed or To Follow Him?

Cindy Dawson

Corrie ten Boom said, “If God has called you, do not spend time looking over your shoulder to see who is following you.” And she is someone whose advice I respect.

So why do we blog? Why do we write? As Christian writers, we say it’s to tell people about the Lord Jesus Christ and His love. But we must be careful that our ultimate desire is to follow Him, not to be followed. He will guide us by His Word.

“Your word is a lamp for my feet,
    a light on my path.” Psalms 119:105 NIV

This is especially true for those of us who want people to follow our blog, FaceBook, or Instagram. Although we are encouraged when readers decide to follow us, that cannot be our guiding force.

What good would it be if millions followed our blog, but God wasn’t using it to speak to any of them? It would be better, by far, to reach a handful of people that God was using us to encourage and bring hope.

“Our greatest fear should not be of failure but of succeeding at things in life that don’t really matter.” –Francis Chan

Acts 20:20 states that Paul taught “from house to house”. And in verse 24, he says, “In every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me.”

The Apostle Paul risked his life to teach from house to house. I was struck by the fact that he did not consider himself too important to reach out to a small number of people.

As we fix our eyes on Jesus and follow Him, He will accomplish His purpose in our lives and in our writing.

Should we develop our skills and study our craft in order to be the best writer we can be? Absolutely!  The Bible says, Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord … It is the Lord Christ you are serving. Colossians 3:23-24 NIV

I am convinced that the more closely I follow Him, the more He will use me. We must not despise the day of small beginnings. (Zechariah 4:10) If only one person is encouraged by what you wrote, God has used you! God cares about individual people.

Jesus said, “See that you do not despise one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven. What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off? And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off.“ Matthew 18:10-14

Nothing thrills me more than for a reader to tell me, “I needed this!” or “This spoke to me.” Then I know that God has used me.

May we always follow Him with our whole heart and pray that He will use us to accomplish His purposes in our writing.

With Love, Cindy

This is My Journey Unscripted.

Click this link to learn more about Jesus: Who Is Jesus?

¹Corrie ten Boom is the author of The Hiding Place.

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realchristianwomen.blog 

Bible

Our Role As God’s Ambassador

Cindy Dawson

Do you sometimes feel like you don’t fit in? You may need to remind yourself that if you are a follower of Jesus Christ, this world is not your home. Your home is in heaven and you are an ambassador for Christ in a foreign land.

“We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us.” 2 Corinthians 5:20 NIV

“Friends, this world is not your home, so don’t make yourselves cozy in it. Don’t indulge your ego at the expense of your soul. Live an exemplary life among the natives so that your actions will refute their prejudices. Then they’ll be won over to God’s side and be there to join in the celebration when he arrives.” 1 Peter 2:11-12 The Message

An ambassador is a “diplomatic official of the highest rank sent by one sovereign or state to another as its resident representative”.¹

We must remind ourselves that this is our role. We are ambassadors sent by God. I think it helps us to live a life a worthy of our calling when we think of ourselves as an ambassador.

“But all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ [making us acceptable to Him] and gave us the ministry of reconciliation [so that by our example we might bring others to Him]” 2 Corinthians 5:18 AMP

An ambassador is sent to a foreign land to reflect the official message of his country. God has sent us into the world with the message of reconciliation.

“… we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel [that tells the good news of salvation through faith in Christ…” 1 Thessalonians 2:4 AMP

However, actions speak louder than words. Talking about Jesus is important, but how we live speaks louder than our words. Caring about others is vital.

 “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.  By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” John 13:34-35

“Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ…” Ephesians 5:2 NLT

 

With Love, 

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This is My Journey Unscripted.

Click this link to learn more about Jesus: Who Is Jesus?

¹ Dictionary.com

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realchristianwomen.blog 

 

 

Christian

Jesus Talks About Wealth

Cindy Dawson

Our Sunday School lesson was taken from Luke 16:1-9.  It can be difficult to understand, depending on which translation you read. We grasped for the true meaning with some difficulty and interesting discussion. I couldn’t wait to get home and search for understanding. Perhaps you studied the same lesson.

Jesus told His disciples a story about a rich man whose financial manager was accused of wasting his possessions. So, naturally the rich man fired his manager.

Worried about his future, the manager took immediate action by reducing the debts of the people who owed money to his master in hopes they would like him and invite him into their homes when he was out of a job.

Jesus said, “The master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly. For the people of this world are more shrewd in dealing with people of their own kind than are the people of the light.” Luke 16:8

He is saying, “Look, the people of this world are clever. They think about how to prepare for their future. They’re shrewd. But the people of the light (believers) aren’t shrewd in their dealings with money. What!?

Jesus is prompting His disciples to be shrewd, not dishonest, shrewd (wise) with how they use wealth. He tells them that the dishonest manager used money to prepare for the future, and so should they.  Then, He compares the people who will welcome the manager into their homes with the new converts who will welcome us into Heaven.

Jesus continues, “Use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.” Luke 16:9

In the blink of an eye, this life will be gone, and so will all our money. But eternity is forever. Jesus is saying the disciples should use their wealth to bring unbelievers to Christ so that these converts will welcome them (the disciples) into their homes in eternity.

In other words, if they were shrewd (like the people of this world), they would be shrewd in preparing for their lives in eternity. They would use worldly wealth to build the kingdom of God.

How do I know this? Because Jesus goes on to say, “… So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches?” Luke 16:11

What are “true riches”? Well, it’s not worldly wealth. That we know. I believe “true riches” refers to treasure we will receive in Heaven.

In Matthew 6:20 Jesus says, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven...”

Click the link below to read this parable in the Amplified translation.

Luke 16:1-14 AMP

  • What do you think Jesus is teaching us with this parable?
  • Do you think we focus on this present life more than the life we will have with God in Heaven when we leave this world behind?
  • Do you think Christians make God’s work a priority in their lives?
  • Doesn’t everything we have really belong to God anyway?
  • How will we use it?
  • Do we love money?

Please share your thoughts!

With Love, 

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This is My Journey Unscripted.

Click this link to learn more about Jesus: Who Is Jesus?

Photo by Sharon McCutcheon on Unsplash

realchristianwomen.blog 

Christian

Lord, Make Me Bold

Cindy Dawson

I found myself in a situation that took me off guard, and I had no idea what to say. As all of us parents love to do, a friend was bragging on her kid. Then, she added that the child was too smart to believe in the Bible.

I uttered a meager, “But it’s true.”

My words were so faint, I don’t know if she even heard me. The conversation drifted to other topics and the opportunity was gone. I felt ashamed for not speaking up.

The Bible says, “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect…” 1 Peter 3:15 NIV

I wasn’t prepared. It’s that simple.

The next day in prayer, I asked the Lord to forgive me, help me prepare, and give me another chance to witness to her.

The Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy saying, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” 2 Timothy 3:16 NIV

Paul goes on to say this (from the Amplified translation): 

“… be ready when the time is right and even when it is not [keep your sense of urgency, whether the opportunity seems favorable or unfavorable, whether convenient or inconvenient, whether welcome or unwelcome]…” 2 Timothy 4:2 AMP

I pray that I will learn from this experience and prepare well for the next opportunity God puts in my path.

I confess, it’s easier to write about the Lord’s goodness and love than it is to boldly speak up when an opportunity arises. Oh it’s easy to talk about Jesus at church, but what about around our friends and acquaintances?

Will they talk about me behind my back? Will they avoid me? Will I make them uncomfortable? Can’t I just blend in??

Lord, Give us boldness to speak Truth fearlessly, as we should. Give us boldness to tell about Jesus and His love. Teach us to do it the right way, with gentleness and respect.

With Love, 

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This is My Journey Unscripted.

Click this link to learn more about Jesus: Who Is Jesus?

Photo by frank mckenna on Unsplash

realchristianwomen.blog 

 

 

 

 

Christian

Lord, Teach Me to Pray

Cindy Dawson

Two years ago, I had no idea I was going to write a blog. I had no idea my daughter would lead worship in my church. I had no idea God was getting ready to change my life.

But God had His plan working all along, even though I was completely unaware of what He was doing! He already knew these things would happen. I have prayed frequently and asked God to do many things, but I haven’t always seen the answers I hoped for. Finally, I asked Jesus to teach me to pray.

I learned I was right to ask Jesus to teach me how to pray. He has already taught me something new! Jesus said, “This, then, is how you should pray: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven…: Matthew 6:9-10 NIV

What does that have to do with effectual prayer? Everything! Because, I don’t need to go to God with a list of things for Him to do. What do the words mean “hallowed be your name”? Hallowed means: honored as holy, blessed, greatly revered, respected, honored and worshiped.

Let’s think about that for a minute. When we go to the Father in prayer, let us worship Him. Let us adore Him and recognize the character of our God. Let us enter His presence with thanksgiving and praise.

Then Jesus said, “Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” 

God has shown me that the key to effectual prayer is not about me. It’s not about my ability to pray. It’s about Him! I’ve been too focused on myself instead of on Him!  

Let Jesus teach us to pray. Let us worship the Father. Let us enter His presence with thanksgiving and praise. Then, let us pray for His will to be done in our life, in our church, in our city, and all over the world. He has a plan that is better than all we can ask or imagine! 

“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…” Ephesians 3:20 NIV

The words of the hymn are true, “What a friend we have in Jesus.” But, let us have a new and deeper revelation of His greatness and love. Let us revere and love Him as we should. We can find words to praise Him throughout the Psalms! Here are just a few key verses:

“O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth. You have set your glory above the heavens…. When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him… that you care for him?” Psalm 8:1-4 NIV

“I love you, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge. He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I call to the Lord who is worthy of praise….” Psalm 18:1-3a NIV

“To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul; in you I trust, O my God.” Psalm 25:1-2a NIV

“Your love, O Lord, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies. Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains, your justice like the great deep…. How priceless is your unfailing love!” Psalm 36:5-7 NIV

Ask Jesus to teach you to pray!

With Love, 

AA55AA1F-EA36-49A9-92BE-41FD67348618

This is My Journey Unscripted.

Click this link to learn more about Jesus: Who Is Jesus?

Photo by Gift Habeshaw on Unsplash

realchristianwomen.blog 

 

 

 

Christian

When Life Isn’t Fair

Cindy Dawson

Has something very unfair happened to you? It might be an unfaithful spouse, slander/ lies, you lost your job,  or anything you consider completely UNFAIR). You probably can’t believe it’s really happening to you. If your answer is yes, this is God’s promise for you:

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him …” Romans 8:28 NIV

You might be thinking, “Nothing good could come from this!” But hang on….

This is one of my favorite promises. Believing the promise got me through many hard times in my life, and in the end God delivered. He worked things for good. God has done this in my life and He will do it for you!

“For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.” Romans 15:4

While reading my Bible, I was struck by this verse. I couldn’t get it out of my mind. I began to think about the story of Joseph and how there was so much to learn from his example.

Joseph was a young man who loved God, but that didn’t matter to those who hated him. They were driven by jealousy.

Because of this jealousy, the young man suffered through many great injustices. Instead of becoming bitter and vindictive, he looked to God for help. 

Let me tell you the end of the story. In Genesis 50: 20-21, Joseph said to his brothers, “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good …” Stop and think about that for a minute!

Has someone done something to you with the intention to harm you? Remember: It isn’t over until God turns it around for good!

Insights from the life of Joseph have helped me through many trials. As I summarize, put yourself in Joseph’s place. Think about it happening to you.

Joseph’s brothers hated him, really hated him! They were so jealous of him, they plotted to kill him and and then tell their father that he was killed by a wild animal.

One of the brothers talked the others into just leaving him in an empty well. (He planned to secretly come back and rescue Joseph.) But the brothers saw a caravan of merchants approaching and decided to sell Joseph to them.

The merchants traveled to Egypt and sold Joseph to Potiphar, Pharaoh’s captain of the guard. (Can things get worse?) Yes!

Potiphar put Joseph in prison for tying to rape his wife (something he didn’t do). After languishing in this dungeon for years, Joseph finally got out of prison. This is where things get better. Joseph was promoted to the highest position in Egypt, second only to Pharaoh.

When Joseph was sold by his brothers, he was 17. When he became leader over all of Egypt, he was 30. Thirteen years of unfair life events! But the Bible says that when he was sold to Potiphar, “The Lord was with Joseph and he prospered…” Genesis 39:2

When Joseph was put in prison, “the Lord was with him; he showed him kindness and granted him favor in the eyes of the prison warden. The Lord was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did.” Genesis 39: 21 & 23 

***************

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him …” Romans 8:28 NIV

God will work everything for good in your life “if you love him”. It doesn’t say “if you have been a pretty good Christian and always went to church. It says, “if you love him.” It doesn’t say “if you have never sinned”. It says “if you love him”. It doesn’t say “if you deserve it”. It says, IF YOU LOVE HIM”.

If you are a Christian and you love God, He will work all things for good! Trust Him.

 A PRAYER

Father in Heaven, Your word promises that in all things, you will work for the good of those who love you. I love you Lord, and surrender my life to you, for You, O God, are my refuge and my shield, I have put my hope in your word. Those who know your name trust in you, for you have never forsaken those who seek you. I trust in your unfailing love. I love you, O Lord, my strength. You are my rock and my fortress, my deliverer! To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul, in you I trust. O Lord, you are close to the brokenhearted and save those who are crushed in spirit. How priceless is your unfailing love. I will not fear, for you are with me. Thank you, Lord, for your precious word, for your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path. I love you, O Lord, my Savior and my Strength. Amen

(Inspired from the Psalms – Through the Psalms, we learn how to praise Him. It will lead us into His presence. )

Read all about Joseph in Genesis chapters 37-50

 There is so much more to learn! God will speak encouragement to your heart. 

With Love,

Cindy

This Is My Journey Unscripted.

Do you want to become a Christian? Click this link to learn more: Who Is Jesus?

realchristianwomen.blog  

Bible, Christian

What’s In YOUR Closet?

Cindy Dawson

I spotted a girl in a strange looking outfit. (Kids have some crazy ideas about fashion in middle school.) From across the cafeteria, I tried to see what kind of shirt she was wearing, but couldn’t make out the words. It was something I’d never seen before.

I gazed out at the students as they ate their lunch. They were laughing loudly, talking loudly and having fun. Eventually, I made my way to the other side of the cafeteria. She was a beautiful girl, but my heart sank like lead when I saw what was written on her shirt. It said “Valvoline”.

She wore a wrinkled plaid skirt with the discarded shirt of someone who serviced cars at an instant oil change center. Heart-sick, I looked around at the other girls. Many wore Seaside Beach tee shirts, college team tees, Under Armour, and other designer clothes. The contrast shocked me.

What would it be like to go to Middle School wearing a Valvoline work shirt because that was all you had to wear? Not cool! 

And in middle school – the supreme goal is: be cool!

I thought about my own children, grown now, but never having to do without – well, anything! I thought, “Why have I been so blessed?” God answered my question.

” From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.” Luke 12:48

It made me think. I definitely fall in the “been given much” group. That means God demands a lot from me and He asks much more from me than from others.

I can’t help everyone. I know that. But I can listen and obey the promptings of the Holy Spirit. That is my responsibility as a Christian.

We must all take an account of our lives.  Do our children have to wear cast-aside Valvoline shirts to school?  Probably not.

I don’t know what God might ask me to do next, but when He asks I’ll remember the Valvoline Girl, and I won’t be able to ignore the still small voice asking me to help.

What does God’s Word say about it?

“But whoever has the world’s goods (adequate resources), and sees his brother in need, but has no compassion for him, how does the love of God live in him?” 1 John 3:17 AMP

“Blessed is he who has regard for the weak;” Psalm 41:1

“The generous will themselves be blessed, for they share their food with the poor.” Proverbs 22:9

“Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the Lord, and he will reward them for what they have done.” Proverbs 19:17

“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, 4 not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.” Philippians 2:3-4 NIV

“… we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ” Acts 20:35 NIV

“For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in,  I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink?  When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you?  When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.'” Matthew 25:35-40

With Love, 

AA55AA1F-EA36-49A9-92BE-41FD67348618

This is My Journey Unscripted.

Click this link to learn more about Jesus: Who Is Jesus?

Photo by Charisse Kenion on Unsplash

realchristianwomen.blog 

 

Bible, Christian

Am I An Annoying Distraction?

Cindy Dawson

Did you know that if you’re the most eloquent preacher/ speaker on the planet and thousands attend your conferences and buy your books, but you don’t show God’s love to people, God says you are an “annoying distraction”.

And if you have such a strong faith that you can perform miracles, but you don’t love your fellow man, you’re just a nobody.

Not only that, but if you sell everything you own and give it all to feed the poor, but you don’t spread God’s love, it does you no good at all.

Read 1 Corinthians 13: 1-3 from the Amplified Bible, (AMP).

 If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not [a]love [for others growing out of God’s love for me], then I have become only a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal [just an annoying distraction]. 2 And if I have the gift of prophecy [and speak a new message from God to the people], and understand all mysteries, and [possess] all knowledge; and if I have all [sufficient] faith so that I can remove mountains, but do not have love [reaching out to others], I am nothing. 3 If I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I surrender my body [b]to be burned, but do not have love, it does me no good at all.

Several years ago, the Holy Spirit showed me the tremendous importance of showing His love to others. I was questioning something I was being taught in my church and had decided to re-read the New Testament. I read it three times in a row within a short period of time.

I kept track of the number of times each topic was presented in the Word of God. Every time faith was taught, I tallied it. I did the same for every topic that came up including healing, prayer, prosperity, hope joy, mercy, love, and many others.

Do you know what I discovered? Overwhelmingly, the main message of the New Testament, and the most mentioned topic, was love! If love was the most talked about subject, it must be really important! I knew that if I understood nothing else, I must understand what matters most to God – love.  I began to study love in depth.

“As you have heard from the beginning, His command is that you walk in love.” 2 John 6

The discovery of this truth and knowing that walking in love was of utmost importance to God, I began on a journey to learn how to walk in love. The Old Testament and New are full of insights that teach us to love as Christ loves.

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself.” Matthew 22:37-39

The Bible has a lot to say about what it means to walk in love. I look forward to sharing more about what I have learned (and am continuing to learn) about love.

Did you show God’s love to someone today?

With Love, 

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This is My Journey Unscripted.

Click this link to learn more about Jesus: Who Is Jesus?

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