Tag: love

The Tough Get Going…

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James 1:12 “Anyone who meets a testing challenge head-on and manages to stick it out is mighty fortunate. The reward is life and more life for those who are loyally in love with God.”

Looking at a garden on a hot day reveals the plants that are up to a challenge and those that are not. Some plants wilt and quickly dry up never to be seen again. Others simply stand strong and stick out the heat. These are the ones that continue to have life.

Some people wilt like a plant in the heat whenever a challenge comes their way. Others rise up, meeting challenges head-on, sticking them out to the end. This verse calls them “mighty fortunate” and says they are rewarded with life and more life. Why? Simply because they got tough and rose to the challenge, sticking it out to the end.

There is only one-way to meet a challenge head-on: by being loyal and in love with God. As we do this, above everything else, we become equipped to succeed no matter how hot or desperate the battle becomes. When it’s over we get rewarded with so much more life than we had before.

Let’s meet our challenges head-on this week. Let’s not wilt and die but rather gain abundant life by simply obeying our verse. Remember the challenge is worth winning so that we receive our reward. Whenever we’re loyal to God and His Word, every challenge we meet head-on is sure to produce abundant life!

Summer

Faith, Hope, Love…

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Psalms 95:6 “Come let us adore and bow down: Let us kneel before the LORD our maker for he is our God.”

As we approach the celebration of the birth of Jesus many people are busy organising last minute gifts to ensure that everyone is taken care of on the day. Christmas is a special time of outreach and inclusion, a time when we can share the love and goodness of Christ with others.

It is a time to stop and remember the reason for this season. We celebrate the love that God has for this world. His great love sent Jesus into the midst of all that was lost and dying. Jesus’ sacrifice allowed us to be reconciled back to God again as He laid down His life on the cross.

Now that is truly something that we should be thankful for. We should worship God because of it. As we come humbly before our Lord in this way we testify that we are His people and we are surrendered to His leadership.

This Christmas as we celebrate Jesus let’s also remember our maker and our God. Set aside time to adore, worship and bow down before him and express our love and adoration. Not only will this bring honour to God but it will also help to restore faith, hope and love to those around you.

Building Strong Families…

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Psalm 103:17 “But the Lord’s love for those who respect him continues forever and ever, and his goodness continues to their grandchildren”

The foundations under any building are what cause it to stand strong. If they are faulty or inferior they won’t fully support the structure that is built upon them. If foundations are weak, they will almost certainly fail at sometime in the future.

Everyone wants their family to be strong and functional. Our verse teaches us how to build the strong foundation needed to achieve this. It says that as we show respect to God He pours out His love and goodness on us. But it goes further than that. He keeps pouring this love and goodness out onto our children and our grandchildren. Now that’s a strong foundation to build under any family!

It is not difficult to show respect to God. As we are obedient to His Word and live life the way the bible says our lives transform from being self-centered to being God-focused. We become a vessel of worship to Him and He responds by pouring His love and goodness into the future generations of our families.

This week why not strengthen the foundations of your family and effect the coming generations. As we make a choice to do things God’s way we cause His love and goodness to flood over us, our children and our children’s children. A strong foundation will be formed that will enable our families to stand strong through any storm. Prepare now for a strong family in the future!

A Word Hidden…

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Psalm 119:11 “Your word have I hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You.”

Children love a game of hide and seek. As one child counts to 10 the others hide. Then the hunt begins to find them. There are often squeals and laughter as each child is found. The better hidden you are the less likely you are to lose the game.

Today’s verse gives us a very important key to building our future. It says we are to take the Word of God and store it in our heart. It is vital that God’s Word is the very center, the heart, of everything we do in life.

The more of God’s Word we store in our hearts means the less likely we are to sin. We will not miss, forfeit or lack the fullness that God has for us when we have His Word in our heart. It strengthens us to remain close to Him and ensures that we won’t easily be led astray.

Each week we post a fresh encouragement from the Bible. These are great words you can hide in your heart. You can visit this blog anytime and read our archives. Why not visit it whenever you feel you have a little extra room in your heart that needs to be filled by God’s Word.

Remember God instructs us because He loves us. Let’s respond to His love by taking His precious Word and storing it in our heart. It will allow our life to prosper like never before and ensure that we are equipped to win in our future!

Caution Roadwork…

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Philippians 1:6 “I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished…”

When roadwork commence on a highway it’s easy to become frustrated. We have to slow down and crawl along while they work to upgrade the road. Eventually it is complete and we are speeding along in safety again. We soon forget that it had ever happened.

Likewise our verse tells us about the work God has planned in us. He says He has already started it and that it is going to continue. It will keep going until it is complete just like road works. At that time we will again speed along in life and get to the planned destination safely.

The powerful key to victory here is to never allow frustration to set in. God is doing a perfect work in us so we need to slow down and yield to His mighty hand. It may seem slow, bumpy and dirty but as soon as it’s complete we’ll forget the difficulty and frustration that was there. We’ll be speeding along with a smile on our face.

This week know that God is doing a work in you and in everyone around you. Decide not to react in frustration and anger but reach out to others with love and concern. As you do this you’ll reap the same back as a harvest in your life. Rather than people reacting to you they’ll be supporting you. Try it and see just how true the Word of God can be in your life.

Wanted Dead or Alive…

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Proverbs 18:21 “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit”

People like watching a good cowboy movie especially on a wet afternoon. As the good guys pursue the bad guys we often see a sign with the villains picture that says “Wanted Dead or Alive.” The good guys keep chasing him down until they have their man.

Our verse tells us exactly who the villain in our life is; it’s our tongue, or more practically, the words that we speak. Each time we open our mouth we have the choice to speak words that bring life or ones that produce death. If we speak words of life then we eat the fruit of a great life.

This week let’s be like the good guys in the movie and pursue our words. Let’s take time to listen to ourselves and catch any words of death. Don’t concern yourself with what others say just focus on yourself and your words. Other people will eat the fruit that comes from their own words.

When you hear yourself not speaking life then pause for a moment, think and then speak out fresh words of life. You will train yourself into an abundant life in no time. Areas that you have struggled in will start to change. Good stuff will begin to grow and flourish in your life as you tend them correctly with your words.

We love you – have the greatest week!

If you would like a FREE word study from the Bible about the words you speak then please click on the Wanted Poster.

The Return Policy…

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2 Timothy 1:7 “For God has not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind”

Have you ever received a gift that was completely unsuitable? Then you discover that the store has a return policy. When you take your gift in they will exchange it for something you can really use. You leave with what you actually need.

This verse lets us know that we don’t have to accept every gift that is offered to us. In fact God has a super exchange policy that is available to every believer. He says that if we ever receive the spirit of fear we can come to him and exchange it for power, love and a sound mind. Now that’s a great deal!

Often the spirit of fear tries to blow into our life. It leaves cowardice, timidity, fear and intimidation as gifts for us. These gifts DO NOT come from God, so we don’t want them. We need to exchange them for things that we can always use. God says he will give us explosive spiritual power, agape love and a disciplined self-controlled mind whenever we exchange them with him. Now that’s a great deal!

This week let’s make this great exchange. Come to God with you unwanted gifts of cowardice, timidity, fear and intimidation and exchange them for His gifts of power, love and a sound mind. You will appreciate them and use them continually. You’ll be so glad you swapped them!

Jesus He’s My Friend…

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John 15:14 Jesus said “You are my friends if you do what I tell you to do”

We all need friends. As life goes on we soon discover that to keep them involves investment from both sides. Deposits of time, love, wisdom and understanding are just a few things that keep a relationship healthy. Making a choice not to invest in our friendships means that they will suffer and won’t grow how they should.

Our verse this week reveals how easy it is to have Jesus as our friend. It is a simple but often misunderstood truth. All we have to do is obey what he tells us to do and Jesus becomes our friend. Nothing more, nothing less, just obey.

If we disobey Jesus our friendship with Him suffers. He is always prepared to rebuild from the broken pieces but we must make a deposit first. We must return to the Bible and resume doing what He said. Then, before we know it, He’s counting us amongst His friends again.

Now, here’s the best part… Jesus’s friends are to be our friends too. There is absolutely no reason to ever be lonely again. Jesus wants us all to get along. His intention is that we build great friendships with Him at the centre of each one.

If making friends seems difficult then pal up with Jesus first. He’ll ensure that our friendships are sorted out quickly. Life will then become easier, more productive and have greater pleasure than can be imagined.

Love Your Future…

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1 Corinthians 2:9 “…No one has ever seen, no one has ever heard, no one has ever imagined what God has prepared for those who love him.”

Have you ever visited someone’s home and smelt a roast dinner baking in the oven. Even though you have not seen, heard or even imagined that dinner there is an instantly hope you might get invited to stay and enjoy it with them.

Our verse explains that God has cooked up something very special for us. He has provided, prepared and made ready our future. He has promised a future that will eclipse our past.

Now, stop and ponder on this for a moment… God has prepared a future that is so magnificent that it is beyond anything we have ever seen, heard or even imagined. I have seen, heard and imagined some gigantic things but God says that He has tirelessly prepared something even bigger for our future. WOW!

So, how do we access this future? We are told that God has already prepared it for those who “love” him. This word “Love’ comes from the word “agape”. It means to love unconditionally and unbounded. It is how God loves us and how we should love Him.

Let the agape love of God consume you this week. If you feel you need more ask the father and He will provide and before you know it you will be walking in what God has prepared for you.

PS: In the past we sent an Encouragement on Agape Love titled “Close the Gate” You can read it again on our blog by clicking here. It will help you to understand agape love and activate it in your life.

Close the Gate…

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1 Corinthians 13:1 “If I speak with human eloquence and angelic ecstasy but don’t love, I’m nothing but the creaking of a rusty gate.”

We can all remember the squeak that an old garden gate made or the sound of the creak & slam of the derelict screen door on an old house. We often remember these familiar sounds for a long time. Other strong memories may include a kind and helpful teacher or the person who helped us when no one else would.

Today’s verse helps us to see what actions bring divine value to our life. The key here is “love”. This word comes from the Greek “agape”. This is the type of love that is unconditional and unbounded by anything – it is the type of love God shows to us. It is the type of love God wants us to show to each other.

It doesn’t matter how well we speak of others or how passionate our words are towards them. If we don’t unconditionally love them we sound like that squeaking gate every time we open our mouth. Remember we cannot fool God. His ear is listening for the sweet sound of love every time we speak. He doesn’t want to hear the sound of that loveless gate squeaking again.

Challenge yourself this week to allow the Holy Spirit to invest a new deposit of agape love into your life. Open your Bible and get into God’s Word. The Word will help wash away past offenses and hurt that you may carry. It will be like putting oil on that rusty hinge. The new sound that God hears is sure to bring pleasure to His ears.