In His Love, Cindy
Do you want to know more about Jesus? See my page Who Is Jesus?
RealChristianWomen.blog
Extra Encouragement For Moms
Tag: love
If Jesus Sent a Letter to YOUR Church, What Would It Say?
Jesus said we are blessed if we read the book of Revelation. I also realize that studying Revelation can be overwhelming! So let’s break it down to one bite-size piece.
Interestingly, in chapters 2 and 3 Jesus expresses serious concerns for 5 of the 7 churches, and He has made them known to us by including them in the Scriptures. With that in mind, shouldn’t we give it careful attention and ask ourselves if we are guilty of the same things? Here is a list of those concerns:
- To the Church in Ephesus… “You have forsaken the love you had at first.” (Revelation 2:4) He goes on to say that if this doesn’t change, He will remove their lampstand, meaning the church will not continue to exist. They were commended for their hard work, perseverance, and discernment. They also endured hardship and did not grow weary. But all of this could not excuse their diminishing love for Christ. Having lost the zeal and enthusiasm they had at first, they were just going through the motions.
- To the Church in Smyrna…no criticism
- To the Church in Pergamum… “There are some who hold to the teaching of Balaam… You also have those who hold to the teaching of the Nicolaitans.” (Revelation 2:14-15)
- To the Church in Thyatira… “You tolerate that woman Jezebel.” (Revelation 2:20)
- To the Church in Sardis…“You are dead. Wake up!” (Revelation 3:1-2) Have you ever been to a dead church? This church was filled with people going through the motions of dead religion.
- To the Church in Philadelphia… no criticism
- To the Church in Laodicea… “You are neither cold nor hot…You are lukewarm… Because you are lukewarm I am about to spit you out of my mouth.” (Revelation 3:15-16) That sounds like apathy. Perhaps they were allowing “the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things [to] come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful” (Mark 4:19).
These concerns can be put into 2 main categories: a decreasing love for God (Ephesus, Sardis, and Laodicea) and tolerance of false teaching (Pergamum and Thyatira). These are serious problems that the church today should be aware of and look out for. For now, I want to turn our attention to the problem of allowing our love for God to wane.
A Decreasing Love for God
Consider this: When asked, “What is the greatest commandment in the Law?” Jesus 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 22:36-38
I asked the Lord, What does that mean? What does it look like? Here is what I found in the Word:
1. We show our love to God when we make decisions to obey His every command.
Jesus said, “Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them… Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. Anyone who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me.” John 14:21, 23-24 (emphasis mine)
2. We show our love to God when we worship the God of the Bible, not a god we have created to be what we want him to be. Idols are gods of our own creation. They promise to give us what we want.
“You shall have no other gods before Me. You shall not make for yourself an idol,” Exodus 20: 3-4 NASB
“… true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit [from the heart, the inner self] and in truth; for the Father seeks such people to be His worshipers. God is spirit [the Source of life, yet invisible to mankind], and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” John 4:23-24 AMP (emphasis mine)
“For the time will come when people will not tolerate sound doctrine and accurate instruction [that challenges them with God’s truth]; but wanting to have their ears tickled [with something pleasing], they will accumulate for themselves [many] teachers [one after another, chosen] to satisfy their own desires and to support the errors they hold,” 2 Timothy 4:3 AMP
3. We show our love to God when we persevere.
“Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.” James 1:12
4. We show our love to God when we obey our calling and seek to do His will.
“Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”
He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.” John 21:16
Are there other ways we can show God our love? Of course! These 4 things may not be what you expected to find on the list, but I’m pretty sure that if we are doing these things, we are showing God that we love Him! On the other hand, if we are not doing these things … we should examine our hearts.
In His Love, Cindy
Do you want to know more about Jesus? See my page Who Is Jesus?
All Scripture references are from the NIV unless otherwise noted.
RealChristianWomen.blog
Verse for Meditation, 9/21/23
“Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.” 1 Corinthians 13:6 NIV Read full chapter
My Thoughts: To affirm transgenderism or homosexual behavior is not love. Sin brings pain and heartache. It always does. That’s why God warns us against it. Pastor David Jeremiah says, “This is the way sin works: it comes covered in an attractive veneer that hides its evil and hideous consequences.” (See Romans, Chapter 1.)
In His Love, Cindy
Do you want to know more about Jesus? See my page Who Is Jesus?
Photo by Emmanuel Phaeton on Unsplash
RealChristianWomen.blog
Sunday’s Memory Verse, 9/17/23
“The Lord delights in those who fear him,
who put their hope in his unfailing love.” Psalm 147:11 NIV
In His Love, Cindy
Do you want to know more about Jesus? See my page Who Is Jesus?
RealChristianWomen.blog
Monday’s Verse, 9/4/23
“If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved …. “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”[c]” Romans 10:9-10 & 15b NIV (emphasis mine) Read full chapter
In His Love, Cindy
Do you want to know more about Jesus? See my page Who Is Jesus?
Photo by Alan Bowman on Unsplash
RealChristianWomen.blog
All Kids Need Love
The following quote was not made to get a chuckle based on obvious things we all know about children but based on the psychiatric examination of convicted murderers who experienced abuse in childhood.
Children need love, especially when they don’t deserve it.”
Harold S. Hubert
Hulbert, a leading psychiatric expert witness of his time and a child psychiatrist, knew the potential magnitude of the effects of being a child unloved. He testified in the murder trials of men affected by such abuse.
So, what does this mean to us? One doesn’t have to go far to find children who need love. The foster care system in America is overflowing with abandoned children who need love.
Over 390,000 children are in foster care. 25% of these children will attempt suicide.
For the 23,000 young adults who age out of foster care each year,
- 80% of males will become incarcerated.
- 40% will be homeless within 18 months.
- 97% will immediately enter into chronic poverty.
Poverty creates hungry children that need love. Drug abuse produces neglected children who need love.
According to the National Institute of Children’s Health Quality, Over 20,000 babies are born each year dependent on illegal or prescription drugs and suffer neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS), a type of opiate withdrawal. That’s the equivalent of one baby born every 25 minutes with drug addiction.
To find opportunities to cuddle drug-addicted babies, google “Cuddle drug-addicted babies”.
Children who need love are in our towns and in our schools. These children may not be in your neighborhood, but they aren’t far away.
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.” Matthew 18:10 NIV
Is the Holy Spirit speaking to your heart? What is God asking you to do? More than likely, it is something small. Help in your Vacation Bible School? Teach in your Mission Church? Volunteer in a local school as a mentor, or in a hospital for drug babies? Volunteer for CASA? Give a small amount of money to a worthy cause?
Whatever you do, don’t close your eyes to the desperate need all around us.
“Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress …” James 1:27a
There are many ways you can give God’s love to children. All you have to do is ask Him to show you. And remember this:
“In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work 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
In His Love, Cindy
Do you want to know more about Jesus? See my page Who Is Jesus?
All Scripture references are from the NIV unless otherwise noted.
RealChristianWomen.blog
Tuesday’s Verse, 8/29/23
“When I said, My foot is slipping, Your mercy and loving-kindness, O Lord, held me up. In the multitude of my [anxious] thoughts within me, Your comforts cheer and delight my soul!” Psalm 94:18-19 AMPC
In His Love, Cindy
Do you want to know more about Jesus? See my page Who Is Jesus?
Photo by Ahtziri Lagarde on Unsplash
RealChristianWomen.blog
Monday’s Verse, 8/28/23
“My heart is with Israel’s princes,
with the willing volunteers among the people.
Praise the Lord!” Judges 5:9 NIV
My Thoughts: Does your church need volunteers in Children’s Ministry?
In His Love, Cindy
Do you want to know more about Jesus? See my page Who Is Jesus?
Photo by Carlos Magno on Unsplash
RealChristianWomen.blog
Where Can I Find the Hope and Encouragement I Need Today?
About a year ago, I found this intriguing story, and not sure how I might use it, I filed it away for future use. Today, it hit me! Could I find it again? I did! Read the story below.
The Clay Balls
As a man explored caves by the seashore, he found a canvas bag full of hardened clay balls. Apparently, someone had rolled the clay balls and left them out in the sun to bake. They didn’t look like much, but intrigued, the man took the bag.
As he strolled along the beach, he threw the balls one at a time out into the ocean as far as he could. He thought little about it until he dropped one and it cracked open on a rock. Inside was a beautiful, precious stone!
Delighted, the man started breaking open the remaining clay balls. Each one contained a similar treasure. He found thousands of dollars worth of jewels in the 20 or so balls he had left.
Then it struck him. He had thrown maybe 50 or 60 balls with their hidden treasure out into the ocean waves. Instead of thousands of dollars in treasure, he could have taken home tens of thousands, but he had just thrown it away!
The clay balls are like the Scriptures. A man goes through his whole life without realizing the value of what he possesses. He has several copies of the Bible, but they mostly remain on a dusty shelf, unread.
Then one day, he finds himself in crisis. In desperation, he opens his Bible, searching for answers. He finds a treasure inside. It’s the answer he needs! It is the hope he needs! It is the comfort he needs! It is the guidance he needs!
He suddenly realizes that just like the man in the story, he has carelessly thrown away the treasures he could have had: wisdom, joy, encouragement, faith, comfort, understanding, and hope. If only he had known what treasures were within his dusty Bible.
Now an old man, he realizes he could have known the wisdom of God in all of the trials and hard times of this life.
“Blessed are those who find wisdom,
those who gain 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.” Proverbs 3:13-15
The Bible is a bottomless treasure chest of beauty and wonder… inspired, true, authoritative, clear, sufficient, powerful, Christ-centered, and precious. May God help us to treat it as such.”
Matt Smethurst, Pastor
“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” 2 Timothy 3:16-17
“The unfolding of your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple.” Psalm 119:130
“Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves,” the apostle James writes. “Do what it says” (James 1:22).
Happy is the man who possesses a Bible! Happier still is he who reads it! Happiest of all is he who not only reads it but obeys it.”
J.C. Ryle
Peter says God has given us “everything we need for a godly life” through the knowledge available in the Scriptures (2 Pet. 1:3).
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. (Rom. 15:4)
And my favorite, Psalm 119
In His Love, Cindy
Do you want to know more about Jesus? See my page Who Is Jesus?
All Scripture references are from the NIV unless otherwise noted.
Source: 8 Things Your Bible Says About Itself by Matt Smethurst, lead pastor of River City Baptist Church in Richmond, Virginia; editor at The Gospel Coalition
Photo by Daniel Dorfer on Unsplash
RealChristianWomen.blog
Verses for Meditation, 8/24/23
“Your love, Lord, reaches to the heavens,
your faithfulness to the skies.
Your righteousness is like the highest mountains,
your justice like the great deep.
You, Lord, preserve both people and animals.
How priceless is your unfailing love, O God!
People take refuge in the shadow of your wings.” Psalm 36:5-7 NIV
In His Love, Cindy
Do you want to know more about Jesus? See my page Who Is Jesus?
Photo by Léonard Cotte on Unsplash
RealChristianWomen.blog
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