Claire's Prayer

“𝑰 𝒌𝒆𝒆𝒑 𝒂𝒔𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑮𝒐𝒅 𝒐𝒇 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝑳𝒐𝒓𝒅 𝑱𝒆𝒔𝒖𝒔 𝑪𝒉𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒕, 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒈𝒍𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒐𝒖𝒔 𝑭𝒂𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓, 𝒎𝒂𝒚 𝒈𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑺𝒑𝒊𝒓𝒊𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒘𝒊𝒔𝒅𝒐𝒎 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒓𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒍𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏, 𝒔𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒎𝒂𝒚 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝒉𝒊𝒎 𝒃𝒆𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓. 𝑰 𝒑𝒓𝒂𝒚 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒆𝒚𝒆𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒎𝒂𝒚 𝒃𝒆 𝒆𝒏𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒅 𝒊𝒏 𝒐𝒓𝒅𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒎𝒂𝒚 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒉𝒐𝒑𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒘𝒉𝒊𝒄𝒉 𝒉𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒄𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒆𝒅 𝒚𝒐𝒖, 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒊𝒄𝒉𝒆𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒈𝒍𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒐𝒖𝒔 𝒊𝒏𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝑯𝒊𝒔 𝒉𝒐𝒍𝒚 𝒑𝒆𝒐𝒑𝒍𝒆, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑯𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒏𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒚 𝒈𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕 𝒑𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒓 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒖𝒔 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒃𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒗𝒆.” – Eph 1:18-19

𝕋𝕙𝕖 𝕖𝕪𝕖𝕤 𝕠𝕗 𝕠𝕦𝕣 𝕙𝕖𝕒𝕣𝕥?! Who knew that our heart has eyes! Eyes that can be enlightened, or stay dim and unfocused. Eyes that can be flooded with inspired light or stumble around in the darkness trying to find their way. Eyes that are opened by the Spirit of wisdom and revelation so that we may know Him better! So that we may know Him with our whole heart, deep down in the depths of our being. So that we might learn about His great power and the hope of our calling.

If a heart has eyes, then perhaps it also has ears. That we would hear Jesus with our heart, not just our mind, not just in knowledge, but that our hearts would be open to hear what He is saying in the Spirit, not in the natural, in the supernatural. Let’s be filled to the brim with the Spirit, let’s be full of the Spirit of wisdom and revelation! Let’s live in the place where we can see Jesus, where we get to know him more, where the eyes of our heart are opened to the glorious light of our Saviour. Where we can walk with our Father and hear His Heart. Where our wants and needs diminish and His thoughts and desires become the focus of our being. In the Spirit. 𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘁!

Surely, if our heart has eyes and ears then maybe it has a voice? A mouth to speak the truth. A mouth to shout out the things that are not as though they were! 𝑨 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒓𝒆𝒋𝒐𝒊𝒄𝒆𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑳𝑶𝑹𝑫 (1 Sam 2:1) 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒄𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒍𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑮𝒐𝒅(Ps 84:2). 𝑨 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒑𝒓𝒂𝒊𝒔𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑳𝑶𝑹𝑫 𝒘𝒉𝒐𝒍𝒍𝒚 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒆𝒕𝒆𝒍𝒚 (Ps 111:1). A heart that has rivers of living water flowing from it just because we believe in the Son! (Jn 7:38)

𝑪𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒖𝒔 𝒂 𝒄𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒏 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕, 𝑶 𝑮𝒐𝒅, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒘 𝒂 𝒓𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒔𝒑𝒊𝒓𝒊𝒕 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏 𝒖𝒔. (Ps 51:10) 𝑮𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒖𝒔 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝒀𝒐𝒖, 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒀𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑳𝑶𝑹𝑫. (Jer 24:7) Give us a heart that continually praises your name, that always gives thanks and tells of your wonderful deeds! (Ps 9:1) Let us be always beside You, always with You, constantly listening to You, yearning for You, pouring out our hearts to You (Ps 62:8), 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝘀, 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗯𝗲 𝗮𝗹𝘀𝗼.(Mt 6:21)

Perhaps Lewis Carroll was absolutely and categorically correct when he wrote Through the Looking Glass. When faced with an impossible event the White Queen stated, “𝘕𝘰𝘸 𝘐’𝘭𝘭 𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘠𝘖𝘜 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘷𝘦. 𝘐’𝘮 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘩𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘯𝘦, 𝘧𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘩𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢 𝘥𝘢𝘺.’ ‘𝘐 𝘤𝘢𝘯’𝘵 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘷𝘦 𝘛𝘏𝘈𝘛!’ 𝘴𝘢𝘪𝘥 𝘈𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘦. ‘𝘊𝘢𝘯’𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶?’ 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘘𝘶𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘢𝘪𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘢 𝘱𝘪𝘵𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰𝘯𝘦. ‘𝘛𝘳𝘺 𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘪𝘯: 𝘥𝘳𝘢𝘸 𝘢 𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘣𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘩 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘩𝘶𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘦𝘺𝘦𝘴.’ 𝘈𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘭𝘢𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘦𝘥. ‘𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦’𝘴 𝘯𝘰 𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘳𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨,’ 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘪𝘥: ‘𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘊𝘈𝘕’𝘛 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘷𝘦 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴.’ ‘𝘐 𝘥𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘢𝘺 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘯’𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘮𝘶𝘤𝘩 𝘱𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘦,’ 𝘴𝘢𝘪𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘘𝘶𝘦𝘦𝘯. ‘𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘢𝘨𝘦, 𝘐 𝘢𝘭𝘸𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘥𝘪𝘥 𝘪𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘧-𝘢𝘯-𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘢 𝘥𝘢𝘺. 𝑾𝒉𝒚, 𝒔𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆𝒔 𝑰’𝒗𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒔 𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒚 𝒂𝒔 𝒔𝒊𝒙 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒐𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔 𝒃𝒆𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒃𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒌𝒇𝒂𝒔𝒕!”

Impossible circumstances are exactly what our Father thrives on! He is known for doing impossible things – parting the red sea, knocking the walls of Jericho down, making the sun standstill, or water cascade from a rock. Now that’s only four impossible things! I could not begin to name the number of miracles God has done or even those talked about in the Bible!

Jeremiah recognized this incredible fact when faced with an impossible situation, his soul literally cries out to the Living God; “𝘼𝙝, 𝙇𝙤𝙧𝙙 𝙂𝙤𝙙! 𝘽𝙚𝙝𝙤𝙡𝙙, 𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙢𝙖𝙙𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙫𝙚𝙣𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙩𝙝 𝙗𝙮 𝙔𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙜𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩 𝙥𝙤𝙬𝙚𝙧 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙤𝙪𝙩𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙚𝙩𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙙 𝙖𝙧𝙢. 𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙣𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙤𝙤 𝙝𝙖𝙧𝙙 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙔𝙤𝙪.” (Jeremiah 32:17) Whatever the task – God is up to it! There are no limitations for our Father, nothing is difficult. 𝕋𝕙𝕖 𝔾𝕠𝕕 𝕨𝕙𝕠 𝕞𝕒𝕕𝕖 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕦𝕟𝕚𝕧𝕖𝕣𝕤𝕖 𝕚𝕟 𝕒𝕝𝕝 𝕚𝕥𝕤 𝕘𝕝𝕠𝕣𝕪 𝕔𝕒𝕟 𝕞𝕒𝕜𝕖 𝕪𝕠𝕦𝕣 𝕚𝕞𝕡𝕠𝕤𝕤𝕚𝕓𝕝𝕖 𝕔𝕠𝕟𝕕𝕚𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟𝕤 𝕡𝕠𝕤𝕤𝕚𝕓𝕝𝕖!

I may not know the exact number of miracles in God’s Word or how many impossible things our LORD does, but I do know that He does them. I do know that we serve a miracle working God! I know that whatever you are facing, whatever trial or difficult circumstance, God can and does work all things together for the good of those that love Him!

John Newton proclaimed,”𝗧𝗵𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗮 𝗞𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝗟𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗲 𝗽𝗲𝘁𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗲 𝗯𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴; 𝗙𝗼𝗿 𝗛𝗶𝘀 𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗽𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘀𝘂𝗰𝗵, 𝗡𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝘀𝗸 𝘁𝗼𝗼 𝗺𝘂𝗰𝗵.” Let’s petition the King of Kings, our beloved Father, and practice believing that God does impossible things, things beyond the bounds of human comprehension, 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘀 𝘀𝗶𝘅 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗼𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗯𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗸𝗳𝗮𝘀𝘁!

Believing for the impossible with you!

“𝙁𝙤𝙧 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙬𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙤𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙙𝙖𝙧𝙠𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙨, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙇𝙤𝙧𝙙. 𝙒𝙖𝙡𝙠 𝙖𝙨 𝙘𝙝𝙞𝙡𝙙𝙧𝙚𝙣 𝙤𝙛 𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 (𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙧𝙪𝙞𝙩 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙎𝙥𝙞𝙧𝙞𝙩 𝙞𝙨 𝙞𝙣 𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙜𝙤𝙤𝙙𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙨, 𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙚𝙤𝙪𝙨𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙨, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙧𝙪𝙩𝙝), 𝙛𝙞𝙣𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙞𝙨 𝙖𝙘𝙘𝙚𝙥𝙩𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙇𝙤𝙧𝙙.” Ephesians 5:8-10

𝗗𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀. Pitch black darkness. The “𝗜 𝗰𝗮𝗻’𝘁 𝘀𝗲𝗲 𝗺𝘆 𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝗻 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗻𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗺𝘆 𝗳𝗮𝗰𝗲” kind of darkness. Ephesians 5:8 tells us that “𝒘𝒆 𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒐𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒅𝒂𝒓𝒌𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔,” not that we lived in darkness but that we were darkness! Quite a sobering thought. Now we are light, not just in the light but we are “𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑳𝒐𝒓𝒅!” As the moon reflects the glorious light of the sun, so we reflect the light of Jesus. We have no light of ourselves, but we are light in the LORD! We are new creations, no longer created out of darkness but out of His wonderful light. Hallelujah – that certainly is something to thank our Father for!

When I think of the reflectors on the wheel of a bicycle, they have no light of themselves; but when the light of a car’s headlights hits that reflector, the reflector glows and shines so brightly and everyone can see that the cyclist is there. We are those reflectors just like a light shining on a hill for all to see! Reflecting the glowing, blinding light of Jesus Christ!

Christ’s light is always shining upon us, His face is always turned toward us. Numbers 6:24 and 25 says,“𝑻𝒉𝒆 LORD 𝒃𝒍𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒌𝒆𝒆𝒑 𝒚𝒐𝒖; 𝒕𝒉𝒆 LORD 𝒎𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒇𝒂𝒄𝒆 𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒆 𝒖𝒑𝒐𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒃𝒆 𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒊𝒐𝒖𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒚𝒐𝒖.” The LORD’s face shines with light and is upon you! Like Moses who “𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒂𝒘𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒇𝒂𝒄𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒓𝒂𝒅𝒊𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝒃𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒉𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒅 𝒔𝒑𝒐𝒌𝒆𝒏 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑳𝑶𝑹𝑫.” – Exodus 34:29.

Spending time in the presence of our Savior makes us glow with His reflected light! It makes us radiant, and others will be drawn to that radiance. Let’s spend time in His presence so that we, too, glow with His reflected light!

I am very easily distracted and love crafts of every kind. I love the colors, textures and sparkles, and can see potential in every beautiful fabric! My problem is, I begin to knit or sew with enthusiasm, and then my eye is caught by another tantalizing project. So I pack away my half-finished work and begin another! 𝗗𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗲𝗱. 𝗘𝗮𝘀𝗶𝗹𝘆 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗲𝗱!

Isn’t it wonderful that our Heavenly Father is not easily distracted? Our King doesn’t start something and not finish it. Philippians 1:6 says, “𝘽𝙚𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙛𝙞𝙙𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜, 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙃𝙚 𝙬𝙝𝙤 𝙝𝙖𝙨 𝙗𝙚𝙜𝙪𝙣 𝙖 𝙜𝙤𝙤𝙙 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙠 𝙞𝙣 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙥𝙡𝙚𝙩𝙚 𝙞𝙩 𝙪𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙡 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙙𝙖𝙮 𝙤𝙛 𝙅𝙚𝙨𝙪𝙨 𝘾𝙝𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙩.” God will not begin a work without finishing it in its entirety—totally completing it.

Charles Spurgeon puts it so eloquently: “𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘯 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘎𝘰𝘥 𝘣𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘵 𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘦𝘵𝘦? 𝘚𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘮𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘰𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘢 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥 𝘢𝘣𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘢𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘧 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘦𝘥; 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘮𝘦 𝘢 𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘧𝘧 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘎𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵 𝘗𝘰𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳’𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘦𝘭, 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘯 𝘪𝘯 𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘦, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘢𝘺 𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘧 𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮 𝘶𝘯𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘦𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴.”

Our Savior has begun a good work in you and He will take all the time needed to make you into someone worth boasting about! He is putting time and effort into you and will not leave His work incomplete!💕🦋

Isn’t it a mystery how you can read a scripture dozens of times when suddenly, a sentence will jump out at you as if highlighted, and you’ll wonder – “𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝗱𝗶𝗱 𝗜 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝘀𝗲𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲!?” This is the miracle of the Word of God. The words etched on these pages are not dead, they are not passive or lifeless, but alive, endless, they have a power of their own!

While reading the account where Peter denied Jesus three times, I noticed a few details that I hadn’t seen before. “𝘽𝙪𝙩 𝙋𝙚𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙨𝙖𝙞𝙙, “𝙈𝙖𝙣, 𝙄 𝙙𝙤 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙨𝙖𝙮𝙞𝙣𝙜!” 𝙄𝙢𝙢𝙚𝙙𝙞𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙡𝙮, 𝙬𝙝𝙞𝙡𝙚 𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙖𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜, 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙧𝙤𝙤𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙘𝙧𝙤𝙬𝙚𝙙. 𝘼𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙇𝙊𝙍𝘿 𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙡𝙤𝙤𝙠𝙚𝙙 𝙖𝙩 𝙋𝙚𝙩𝙚𝙧.” Luke 22:60-61a

“𝑨𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑳𝑶𝑹𝑫 𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒏𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒍𝒐𝒐𝒌𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒕 𝑷𝒆𝒕𝒆𝒓!” The LORD was there! Our Savior heard every denial Peter made, one blow to His heart after another. Jesus heard every defiant renunciation that fell from Peter’s lips. How did I miss this, how did I miss the fact that Satan sifted Peter right in front of Jesus? Oh, how that must have stung, how personal and painful this rejection! And from Peter too – the one who knew that Jesus was the Messiah. The one on whom Christ promised to build His church. But even more than that, this denial came from one of His closest friends!

It was this look that broke Peter causing him to weep bitterly, this look that finally brought Peter to the end of himself. If Peter had not been completely broken, he could not have been completely transformed. Peter’s transformation was so dramatic that he did indeed become the rock on which God’s church was built, bringing the gospel to the gentiles. He died a martyr’s death being crucified upside down upon a cross.

𝗢𝗳 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲, 𝗝𝗲𝘀𝘂𝘀 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲! He always is. He is always standing beside you, watching over you, taking care of you, looking upon you with a love that is never ending. He is there in the good times and the hard ones. He is there when you fail, when you stumble, flounder, or fall. He sees the potential within you and believes wholeheartedly in you. He knows that when you come to the end of yourself, then His story can begin. The purposes and works that He has planned for you can begin and be established. When you find yourself at the end of your rope, remember, Jesus is always there. 𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗲𝗹𝘀𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗛𝗲 𝗯𝗲?!

Thankful that Jesus is always there.

How important is that shield of faith? Let’s look once again at Ephesians 6 where we are told to put on the whole armor of God; “𝔸𝕓𝕠𝕧𝕖 𝕒𝕝𝕝, 𝕥𝕒𝕜𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕤𝕙𝕚𝕖𝕝𝕕 𝕠𝕗 𝕗𝕒𝕚𝕥𝕙 𝕨𝕚𝕥𝕙 𝕨𝕙𝕚𝕔𝕙 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕨𝕚𝕝𝕝 𝕓𝕖 𝕒𝕓𝕝𝕖 𝕥𝕠 𝕢𝕦𝕖𝕟𝕔𝕙 𝕒𝕝𝕝 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕗𝕚𝕖𝕣𝕪 𝕕𝕒𝕣𝕥𝕤 𝕠𝕗 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕨𝕚𝕔𝕜𝕖𝕕 𝕠𝕟𝕖.” This verse starts off with an ‘above all,’ indicating that this indeed is very important. We can see just how important this is if we take a moment to look at that shield in the natural.

This was not a little round shield, like the one carried by Captain America, this was a huge oblong shield as big as a man’s body, sometimes known as a door. Two layers of wood, covered in leather and then drenched in water. You guessed it; the water would extinguish the fiery darts of the wicked one!

Back in the days of Caesar, there was a centurion named Sceva who defended the castle-gate. Sceva bravely fought with his fellow soldiers for 15 hours against the enemy in a particularly ferocious attack. Afterwards, 30,000 arrows were picked up from the floor of the battlefield and Caesar was presented with Sceva’s shield which had been pierced by 230 arrows! Sceva lived to tell his grandchildren the story of this victory because he had taken up his shield.

The enemy’s tactics back then are the same ones he applies now, the strategy was to launch thousands of fiery darts right at the start to create fear, confusion, and panic. Designed to unnerve the soldier into making a mistake, lowering his shield in terror. He hasn’t changed.

Today the enemy launches fiery darts of fear, shame, anxiety, depression, confusion, lies, envy, and unbelief, to name but a few. 1 Peter 4:12 says; “𝔹𝕖𝕝𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕕, 𝕕𝕠 𝕟𝕠𝕥 𝕓𝕖 𝕤𝕦𝕣𝕡𝕣𝕚𝕤𝕖𝕕 𝕒𝕥 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕗𝕚𝕖𝕣𝕪 𝕠𝕣𝕕𝕖𝕒𝕝 𝕒𝕞𝕠𝕟𝕘 𝕪𝕠𝕦, 𝕨𝕙𝕚𝕔𝕙 𝕔𝕠𝕞𝕖𝕤 𝕦𝕡𝕠𝕟 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕗𝕠𝕣 𝕪𝕠𝕦𝕣 𝕥𝕖𝕤𝕥𝕚𝕟𝕘, 𝕒𝕤 𝕥𝕙𝕠𝕦𝕘𝕙 𝕤𝕠𝕞𝕖 𝕤𝕥𝕣𝕒𝕟𝕘𝕖 𝕥𝕙𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕨𝕖𝕣𝕖 𝕙𝕒𝕡𝕡𝕖𝕟𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕥𝕠 𝕪𝕠𝕦.” There is a battle, we cannot avoid it, spiritual warfare is real, but God has given us a strategy, a way in which with Him at our side we can win!

We need to take up that shield of faith knowing that it will indeed quench those lethal darts. Faith in a God who can be taken at His Word, in a God who can be trusted, in a God who will take care of us no matter what. Faith in a God who sees the big picture, whose perspective is complete. Faith in the Great I Am, The Victorious One, the One who will never ever leave us, our wonderful and faithful Father. He is worth putting your faith in!

How often have we heard the story of putting on the whole armour of God? Sadly, in my case, enough times to skip over this oh-so-important passage of Scripture! And so, this morning I found myself looking once again, asking God to make these verses come alive. 𝗔𝗻𝗱 𝗛𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝗱!!

Ephesians 6:13 tells us, “𝕋𝕙𝕖𝕣𝕖𝕗𝕠𝕣𝕖 𝕥𝕒𝕜𝕖 𝕦𝕡 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕨𝕙𝕠𝕝𝕖 𝕒𝕣𝕞𝕠𝕦𝕣 𝕠𝕗 𝔾𝕠𝕕, 𝕥𝕙𝕒𝕥 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕞𝕒𝕪 𝕓𝕖 𝕒𝕓𝕝𝕖 𝕥𝕠 𝕨𝕚𝕥𝕙𝕤𝕥𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕚𝕟 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕖𝕧𝕚𝕝 𝕕𝕒𝕪, 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕙𝕒𝕧𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕕𝕠𝕟𝕖 𝕒𝕝𝕝, 𝕥𝕠 𝕤𝕥𝕒𝕟𝕕.”

I am sure our Father would not tell us to put on this armour because it looks good; so that we can be called The Warrior Bride. Armour is hot and heavy, not glamorous at all. I remember my years living in Canada. In wintertime, we would put on heavy coats, scarves, gloves, hats, all to combat those icy cold temperatures. By the end of the winter, I would be so tired of that heavy coat, so ready to shed it, it weighed me down. But I needed it, if I hadn’t worn all these things, I would have developed frostbite in mere seconds, loosing first my extremities and possibly my life!

Our Father tells us to put on the armour of God because He knows that we need it. We need to be protected because the attack of the enemy will come. Absolutely no doubt about that, we are under attack, and sometimes that attack seems worse than at others.

Once that armour is on, we are told to ‘stand!’ In fact, in these eight short verses Paul tells us to ‘stand’ four times. Surely this is important? Stand, stand against the evil one! When we are correctly equipped, we need not be frightened when that attack comes, we won’t be confused but will take up our position, strong, and alert with no thought of retreat. Best of all when that attack comes, when we stand firm, the enemy MUST flee!

“𝕊𝕠 𝕤𝕦𝕓𝕞𝕚𝕥 𝕥𝕠 [𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕒𝕦𝕥𝕙𝕠𝕣𝕚𝕥𝕪 𝕠𝕗] 𝔾𝕠𝕕. ℝ𝕖𝕤𝕚𝕤𝕥 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕕𝕖𝕧𝕚𝕝 [𝕤𝕥𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕞 𝕒𝕘𝕒𝕚𝕟𝕤𝕥 𝕙𝕚𝕞] 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕙𝕖 𝕨𝕚𝕝𝕝 𝕗𝕝𝕖𝕖 𝕗𝕣𝕠𝕞 𝕪𝕠𝕦.” 𝕁𝕒𝕞𝕖𝕤 𝟜:𝟟

Once upon a time worship songs were simple, we called them choruses and sang them around the campfire at all those wonderful summer camps. From 𝗔𝘀 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗗𝗲𝗲𝗿 to 𝗜𝘁 𝗢𝗻𝗹𝘆 𝗧𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝗮 𝗦𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗸, these choruses have been sung from Seattle to Zimbabwe, from the Smokey Mountains to the banks of Lake Kariba and beyond! I have such vivid memories of my brother strumming his guitar, I would sing along with him as the smoke from the fire curled around us. Voices raised as a sweet-smelling fragrance to the LORD. A simpler time for sure.

This morning, I awoke with the song 𝗜 𝗪𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗘𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗛𝗶𝘀 𝗚𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀 𝗪𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗧𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗸𝘀𝗴𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗜𝗻 𝗠𝘆 𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘁 on my lips and as I sat down with the LORD the refrain rang through my head.

“𝑯𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒎𝒂𝒅𝒆 𝒎𝒆 𝒈𝒍𝒂𝒅,

𝑯𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒎𝒂𝒅𝒆 𝒎𝒆 𝒈𝒍𝒂𝒅,

𝑰 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒓𝒆𝒋𝒐𝒊𝒄𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝑯𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒎𝒂𝒅𝒆 𝒎𝒆 𝒈𝒍𝒂𝒅.

𝑯𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒎𝒂𝒅𝒆 𝒎𝒆 𝒈𝒍𝒂𝒅,

𝑯𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒎𝒂𝒅𝒆 𝒎𝒆 𝒈𝒍𝒂𝒅,

𝑰 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒓𝒆𝒋𝒐𝒊𝒄𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝑯𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒎𝒂𝒅𝒆 𝒎𝒆 𝒈𝒍𝒂𝒅.”

Do you remember it?! Did you sing it too? Surely “𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓈 𝒾𝓈 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒹𝒶𝓎 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝐿𝒪𝑅𝒟 𝒽𝒶𝓈 𝓂𝒶𝒹𝑒, 𝓌𝑒 𝓌𝒾𝓁𝓁 𝓇𝑒𝒿𝑜𝒾𝒸𝑒 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝒷𝑒 𝑔𝓁𝒶𝒹 𝒾𝓃 𝒾𝓉!” For the LORD has made us glad.

Psalm 92:4 says it this way; “𝑭𝒐𝒓 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒎𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒎𝒆 𝒈𝒍𝒂𝒅 𝒃𝒚 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒅𝒆𝒆𝒅𝒔, 𝑳𝑶𝑹𝑫; 𝑰 𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒋𝒐𝒚 𝒂𝒕 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒔 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒅𝒐𝒏𝒆.” The deeds of the LORD make us glad, they bring us joy, cause us to rejoice! As I sat and began to think about my past, my sin, the things I had done that hurt others, my sin sat upon me like a dead weight. Heavy, a burden.

But then I remembered that the LORD has cleansed me from all my sin and delivered me from all unrighteousness! And my heart began to sing, I am washed by the blood of the Lamb, walking in freedom, the chains of my past are broken and no longer hold me back. Incredible – the deeds of the LORD make us glad! That alone should make our hearts sing but there is so much more. So much more that the LORD gives and does. 𝗛𝗲 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘀, 𝗛𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲𝘀, 𝗛𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗲𝘀, 𝗛𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗲𝘀 𝗺𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗯𝗲𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗳, 𝘄𝗵𝘆 𝗛𝗲 𝗵𝗮𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗽 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘂𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗛𝗶𝘀 𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗿𝗲𝗻! 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝗲𝗱𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗟𝗢𝗥𝗗 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘂𝘀 𝗴𝗹𝗮𝗱!

Today I am determined to sing my thankfulness to the LORD, to remind myself with the chorus that He has made me glad, to remember all that God has done for me. Will you join me? Let’s start in the chorus, “𝑯𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒎𝒂𝒅𝒆 𝒎𝒆 𝒈𝒍𝒂𝒅….”

There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that God can, He is most certainly and surely the God of miracles. I am totally and utterly convinced of His incredible power and ability to speak the whole world into existence. 𝐆𝐨𝐝 𝐜𝐚𝐧. Absolutely, He can. Sadly, sometimes I tune into the enemies lies and a flicker of doubt begins to creep into my mind. The thought that perhaps He is unwilling, perhaps because of my past sin, this is what I deserve!

If these thoughts cross your mind too, you are certainly not alone. In 2 Samuel 15-18, we find King David, the man after God’s heart, in some serious trouble. His own son was leading what appeared to be a successful rebellion against him. His friends deserted him, many telling him that this is what he deserved! King David was downcast, it seemed as though his troubles may overtake him. In his pain, he cried out to God, “𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒚 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒔𝒂𝒚 𝒐𝒇 𝒎𝒆, 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒏𝒐 𝒉𝒆𝒍𝒑 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒉𝒊𝒎 𝒊𝒏 𝑮𝒐𝒅.” Psalm 3:2

Spurgeon said; “𝘐𝘧 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘢𝘭𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘤𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘯, 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘦𝘮𝘱𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘢𝘴𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘭, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘳𝘰𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘩, 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘣𝘦 𝘮𝘪𝘹𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳, 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘢 𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘴𝘰 𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘳𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘪𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘦. 𝘐𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘣𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘢𝘧𝘧𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘯𝘰 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘱 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘶𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘎𝘰𝘥.”

But David goes on in the very next verse; “𝑩𝑼𝑻 𝒀𝒐𝒖, 𝑶 𝑳𝒐𝒓𝒅, 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒂 𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒆𝒍𝒅 𝒂𝒃𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒎𝒆, 𝒎𝒚 𝒈𝒍𝒐𝒓𝒚 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑶𝒏𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒕𝒔 𝒖𝒑 𝒎𝒚 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒅.” Deep inside David, and deep inside you, was the knowledge that God would indeed come to his rescue and raise him up. The Great I Am would be his protector and shield him from the attack of his enemy. The Mighty God would be faithful and lift up his head.

‘Lifter’ in Hebrew is “𝐫𝐮𝐰𝐧” meaning: 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘦, 𝘣𝘦 𝘩𝘪𝘨𝘩, 𝘣𝘦 𝘦𝘹𝘢𝘭𝘵𝘦𝘥, 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘸 𝘶𝘱, 𝘵𝘰 𝘮𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘰𝘳 𝘦𝘺𝘦𝘴 𝘶𝘱 𝘴𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘴𝘦𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨! Even in his despair, David knew His God and he began to cry out and declare that the Lord would lift his head and he would see the mighty hand of God move on his behalf.

We all know what happened to David’s son, Absalom. He was found hanging in a terebinth tree with 3 spears thrust through his heart! The enemy of the God of Israel and King David was defeated. Sometimes we need to take this lesson from David’s life and begin to declare victory over our circumstances, to grow up a little and allow the Lord to lift our downcast heads, to open our eyes and see that yes, our God is not only able but He is willing. 𝐇𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐯𝐚𝐧𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐦𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐠𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐯𝐢𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲!

The French say ‘𝕒𝕞𝕠𝕦𝕣,’ the German’s ‘𝕝𝕚𝕖𝕓𝕖,’and the Burmese ‘𝕙𝕜𝕪𝕚𝕥𝕙𝕜𝕪𝕚𝕟𝕟𝕞𝕒𝕪𝕥𝕥𝕒𝕣!’ We say ‘𝕝𝕠𝕧𝕖.’ Dr. Seuss says, “𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶’𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘢𝘯’𝘵 𝘧𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘢𝘴𝘭𝘦𝘦𝘱 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮𝘴.” Most importantly, what does the bible say about ‘love?’

In Mark 12:30 and 31, Jesus answered the scribes, quoting from the book of Deuteronomy; “𝘼𝙣𝙙 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙨𝙝𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙇𝙊𝙍𝘿 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙂𝙤𝙙 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙩, 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙨𝙤𝙪𝙡, 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙙 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙚𝙣𝙜𝙩𝙝. 𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙨𝙩 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙢𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩. 𝘼𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙙, 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙞𝙩, 𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨: 𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙨𝙝𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙣𝙚𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙗𝙤𝙧 𝙖𝙨 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙨𝙚𝙡𝙛. 𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙣𝙤 𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙢𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙜𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙨𝙚.” That certainly is quite a tall order!

The love talked about in the Old Testament is a love that is not just a feeling but an action. The Great I Am showed the children of Israel His love for them; “𝑩𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝑯𝒊𝒔 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒔, 𝑯𝒆 𝒃𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝑬𝒈𝒚𝒑𝒕 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒈𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕 𝒑𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒓,” and our Abba Father showed His eternal love for you; “𝑭𝒐𝒓 𝑮𝒐𝒅 𝒔𝒐 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒍𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝑯𝒆 𝒈𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝑯𝒊𝒔 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒐𝒏𝒍𝒚 𝑺𝒐𝒏, 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒘𝒉𝒐𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒃𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝑯𝒊𝒎 𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒉 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒆𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒆.”

Love is about giving, love is about serving, giving a helping hand to your neighbor, love is being more concerned with giving than receiving. If we were to talk grammar, love would be a noun and a verb! Love is about time, faithfulness and commitment. Love is deeply rooted in relationship; you love someone when you know them fully. The way we know our God is through reading the Word, meditating on His scriptures and listening to His voice. It must be the main motivating factor in how we live our lives.

Do you love the LORD with all your heart, soul, mind and strength? Are you really loving your neighbor, your spouse and your co-worker? Do you look for opportunities to give? 𝗟𝗼𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘄𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗳𝘂𝗹 𝗦𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗼𝗿 𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗼 𝘀𝗺𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗮𝘀𝗸, 𝗻𝗲𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗶𝘀 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗻𝗲𝗶𝗴𝗵𝗯𝗼𝗿 𝗮𝘀 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳, 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗮𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲!