1 John 4:10 - This is Love

This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 1 John 4:10

1 John 4:7-21 is all about love, God's love and our love. I think the key of the concept of love is the verse above. God loved us so much he sent his son to die for our sins. Accepting this sacrifice makes us one with God and God is love, so we have become love. Every thought, everything we do is to come through this love filter. God found a way for the sinful people he created to return to him without sin. This is love. Am I loving people? Am I showing them how to become sinless and return to God?

Lord, Thank you for loving us by sending your son to die for our sins. Please help us to show love to others by leading them to you. Amen.

Psalm 136:1 - His love endures forever.

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
                                                His love endures forever.

I have been waiting for this chapter. I am not sure how I haven't known this for most of my life, but the other day I heard something in a sermon or lesson about Psalm 136. All 26 verses in this chapter begin with something about God or tells something God has done and ends with the phrase, "His love endures forever." Many of these words from Psalm 136 are also featured in the song "Forever" written by Chris Tomlin.

Lord, Thank you for all you are and do. Your love endures forever. Amen.

Psalm 119:176 - Find me, God

I have strayed like a lost sheep.
     Seek your servant,
     for I have not forgotten your commands.

I love this! Hundreds of years before the parable of the lost sheep (Luke 15:1-7) this sentiment is made. We all stray. We all sin and loose our way. How wonderful that we don't have to find our way back on our own. We can ask God to seek us, he will not only show us the way, but to pick us up and carry us back to the fold.

Lord, you are so wonderful and loving. Thank you for seeking us. Please help us to call out to you when we have lost our way. Amen.

Psalm 119:76 - Unfailing Love

May your unfailing love be my comfort,
     according to your promise to your servant.

Happy Valentine's Day! Today everyone is looking for love, and many do not find it. Whether you are dating, married or single, you may feel unloved. But the true, unfailing love only comes from one source, God.

Lord, thank you for your unfailing love. Please help us to recognize and feel that love. Amen.

Psalm 119:58 - Study and meditation

I have sought your face with all my heart;

        be gracious to me according to your promise.

This part of Psalm 119 is about study of and meditation on the word. The word is our portion or sustenance, Through seeking his face, considering our ways and giving thanks, we turn toward his statues, obey and remember his law regardless of our circumstances, We also connect with others and enjoy the love the Lord offers. 

Lord, thank you for the benefits of seeking you. Please help us to always seek your face with all our hearts. Amen.

Psalm 118:29 - His love endures forever

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
     his love endures forever.

Psalm 118 repeats this phrase over and over: His love endures forever. The whole chapter is about ways God has shown his love.

Lord, thank you for your enduring love. Help us to be open to you and experiencing your love. Amen.

Psalm 117 - The shortest chapter in the Bible

Praise the Lord, all you nations;
     extol him, all you peoples.
For great is his love toward us,
     and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever,

Praise the Lord.

Did you know that Psalm 117 is the shortest chapter in the Bible? I didn't until today. And what a beautiful psalm it is. This is one I challenge you (and myself) to memorize.

Lord, thank you for your word. Please help us to memorize your word and keep it on our hearts at all time. Amen.

Psalm 108:4-5 - Happy New Year!

For great is your love, higher than the heavens;
     your faithfulness reaches to the skies.
Be exalted, O God, above the heavens;
     let your glory be over all the earth.

Let's start the year off right by recommitting ourselves to God if we are already Christians or making the decision to commit our lives to the one true God. Let's spend the year focusing on God's love and bringing glory to Him. Happy New Year!

Lord, thank you for chances to start over. Please help us to commit to you, revel in your love and bring glory to your name. Amen.

Psalm 103:8 - The great example

The Lord is compassionate and gracious,
     slow to anger, abounding in love.

The Lord is a great example for us. God loves us and is compassionate and gracious towards us. He is so patient and is slow to anger. The other day at Wal-mart my son and I were making a large purchase of Christmas gifts for a family in need. While we were patting ourselves on the back for helping others, the cashier was really not helpful regarding a few pricing issues. While I ran through the store to get another item with the correct bar code, I had to remind myself to be kind and not get angry. In our interactions with family, fellow Christians, co-workers, store clerks, waiters, and any others we come across as we go about our lives, lets remember to be compassionate, gracious, slow to anger and abounding in love.

Lord, thank you for leading by example and treating us as we should treat others. Please help us to follow through treat others with the love you show us. Amen.

Psalm 36:5 - God is big

Your love, Lord, reaches to the heavens,
     your faithfulness to the skies.

God is big. He is bigger than me and my problems, bigger than America and it's problems, bigger than the world and it's problems. God is omnipotent, all powerful. He is omnipresent, everywhere. He is omniscient, knows everything. But with all this bigness, he still cares about me and my problems. He loves each and every one of us. Amazing!

Lord, thank you for being so big. Please help us to know that you love us no matter what. Amen.

Psalm 23:4 - Darkest Valley

Even though I walk
     through the darkest valley,
I will fear no evil,
     for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
     they comfort me.

We all walk through dark valleys. There is a vast difference between walking through that valley alone and walking through with God. Alone, we are fearful and anticipating the worst. We can only see the situation from one perspective. Walking with God, we are not alone. We have someone who has been here before and sees everything. We have a guide and a friend. The tighter we cling to his had, the safer we will be.

Lord, thank you for guiding us through the darkest valleys. Please help us to cling to your hand and listen to your directions. Amen.

1 Thessalonians 4:11-12 - Work hard and mind your own business

And to make it your ambition to lead a quiet life: You should mind your own business and work with your hands, just as we told you, so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody.

Ok, I gotta' say, this verse kind of surprised me. the two verses above it were about love so I expected to be sharing something about love.

Then I read this.

I'm always looking for the grand calling, the thing that will make me amazingly significant. Just this morning I read about this concept in Unoffendable by Brant Hansen. So maybe God has me in the right place, doing the right job, working hard.

Lord, thank you for giving us these simple tasks. Help us to realize that an extraordinary thing has already happened: You, the Lord of Lords, Creator of the Universe, love us and want to be with us. Amen.

Romans 8:37-39 - Live like a winner

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

I take so much comfort in this passage. There is power in knowing the battle has already been won. We are to live like winners!

Lord, thank you for your power and assurance. Please help us to live like conquerors. Amen.

Psalm 143:7-8 - Depressed

Answer me quickly, Lord; my spirit fails. Do not hide your face from me or I will be like those who go down to the pit. Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I entrust my life.

I am feeling depressed this morning. Maybe it's the rain. Maybe it's my job. Not sure why. I went to BibleGateway and typed depression in the search box and the verse above was found.

Lord, thank you for your word and the amazing comfort I receive from it. Please help my spirit not to fail. Amen.

Genesis 35:18 - What is your name?

As she breathed her last—for she was dying—she named her son Ben-Oni.[a]But his father named him Benjamin.[b]

Footnotes:

1. Genesis 35:18 Ben-Oni means son of my trouble.
2. Genesis 35:18 Benjamin means son of my right hand.

What is your name? Careless. Stupid. Idiot. Pain In The Rear. Complainer. Underachiever. Useless. Unlovable. Son of my trouble. Sometimes our parents, spouses, children, work associates, etc. give us names. The names may reveal our most unflattering traits or they may be more a reflection of the giver rather than you. Fortunately we have a father who will give us a new name. Forgiven. Loved. My Child. Saved. Part Of My Family. Part Of My Body. Peacemaker. Conqueror.

Lord, Thank you so much for naming us as your children. Help us to tune out the derogatory names flying around in our head and live up to the names you give us. Amen.

Genesis 29:31 - God sees our struggles

When the Lord saw that Leah was not loved, he enabled her to conceive, but Rachel remained childless.

As mother to half of the 12 tribes of Judah, Leah was surely favored by the Lord, like Mary the mother of Christ. I am sure it was a difficult life for Leah to always play second fiddle to her younger sister, but God loved her and listened to her. God loves us and cares about what happens to us. He knows when we are struggling. He listens to us and helps us according to his will and timing.

Lord, thank you for knowing us. Thank you for knowing when our lives are difficult. Thank you for loving us. Amen.

Genesis 21:17

God heard the boy crying, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, “What is the matter, Hagar? Do not be afraid; God has heard the boy crying as he lies there.

God loves everyone. I sometimes get so wrapped up in my world and my issues, I forget that God loves everyone else too. He may be doing things in our lives which we may or may not want, with a purpose having nothing to do with us. Sarah wanted Hagar and her son sent away, but God still loved them and took care of them even thought they were not the "main story." 

Lord, Thank you for loving me, and for loving everyone else. Please help me to see beyond my story, to know you are working things out for more people than just me and those close to me. Amen. 

Zephaniah 3:17

The Lord your God is with you,
the Mighty Warrior who saves.
He will take great delight in you;
in his love he will no longer rebuke you,
but will rejoice over you with singing.

I could not go through a study on Zephaniah without including this verse. This is my favorite verse in the Bible. I am so amazed God takes great delight in me and rejoices over me in singing.

Lord, thank you so much for loving me, for being with me, for saving me, for delighting in me, and for rejoicing over me. I am so blessed! Amen.