Choosing To Love

[hldude33]

[font="arial]"Choosing To Love"[/font]

[font="Arial"]By Zach Wood[/font]

1 John 4:19

We love because he first loved us.

The last devotional I shared with you talked about God's crazy love for us through His son Jesus Christ. I still cannot help but think about how God loves us so much, yet, many choose not to love Him back. Am I saying some of us choose not to love Him? Well....possibly. Do we not all have times when we fail to show God love? Do we not have times when we completely go our own ways and refuse to show Him love and love others as well?

This passage I have shared is very short, but proves a powerful point. As Christians, we are called to love God for what He has done for us, but also are called to love others. If we fail to show love to others, we cannot love God in the way we are called to love. He desires for us to show love to Him and to others. Failing to do either of these acts of love is choosing not to love. You may think this is pretty elementary thinking, but if you take a moment to apply it to your life and your actions, do you really find yourself loving God and loving others?

Why in the world would we choose to love God, but then choose not to love other people as He has called us to do? Because people are all different and it becomes very challenging when personalities do not mesh and differences set in. You may have co-workers you cannot get a long with because of personality differences. You may not get along with your kids because you have different ideas of what is acceptable and unacceptable behavior. You may not get along with your spouse because you do have hold the same values and are constantly bickering because you cannot agree. You may not work well with another volunteer at church because you have different ideas how a program should be run. There are so many different situations and scenarios in which we do not get along with others. That is just part of learning to love others and get along with them. God never gave us permission to blow someone else off just because they do not agree with how we do things.

As I write this, I am even convicted in my own life how I do not love others as I need to. At work, at church and even in my own family, I tend to show more love to some than others just because of how my personality and differences work out in the various relationships. God calls me to love because He gave His own life to show me love.

If we claim to love God, we must show love to others. If we are to be effective witnesses for the Kingdom, we have no choice but to show God's love to others. Why would we not choose to love Him in return for all that He has done and continues to do for us?

I pray that your choice would willingly be to love God and love others as He has called us to do.

 

[WhiteKnuckle]

In my experience and opinion,,,,

Love has nothing to do with feeling. (maybe not at first) I has everything to do with recognizing a need and fulfilling it if possible. It's about doing the right thing. It's the same as forgiviness has nothing to do with not feeling angry when wronged.

In time as we understand other people and where they come from we can form and build compassion, which does involve more emotion.

Just the same as, at first we don't love God, but do things out of fear. Later we realize how good God is, then start doing things out of love.

The relationships with strangers is very different that relationships with flesh and blood, or closely developed friendships.

 

[Miss Hepburn]

My poems this afternoon for whom it may concern:


Let all my heart be still.
Let me feel all the Love that is Yours for me.
Let me feel what You are.
Let me feel your Divine Presence through me -
Make my heart burn with You again.
Remind me every hour how much You love me.
Make me your sponge for You.
Allow me to give You joy by being open to You.
All that makes You happy is me knowing Who You are and
letting You touch me.

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All the world is going to and fro.
But I see You behind it all.
All the people walking here and there,
But I see You behind all things.
I stand sometimes in silence in a crowd and I
See You and my heart explodes.
But I remain an actor pretending to be like them.
But You and I know.

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Our secret is ours - but sometimes
I look into the eyes of another of Your lovers.
The sweetness can't be hidden - their love
for You shines.
We meet in a church or at a party and we know
we have found another swooning, wasted, useless
secret lover of Yours;
Unable to function properly in this world for
Love of You.

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Why can't people feel what burns in my chest?
If I could only place their hand on my breast...
if I could rip open my rib cage for them to see...
If I could transmit the love You give me...
If they could see the torture You give me...
If they knew what work it is to be able to withstand this...
Why do You give this to me?
Ah, because I want You and You know I wait for You.

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I practice.
Everyday I practice.
How can I feel You and remain functional.
How can I simply say hello to a friend and not scare
them with Your love gaze.
Why do you love through me so.
Ah, I can simply smile and help them with their chore.

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Feelings are invisible.
Why do they scare people so.
Why do they stop themselves from feeling Your Ecstasy.

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I will continue.
I will not stop.
I don't care,
I will not be effected.
No one's shyness or fear will stop me.
I will let Your love be known to them.
I will tell them it is not mine.
I will try to be true to Your will,
that Your love be felt and known.
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I wait for You.
But, I laugh - You are waiting for me to wait for You.
No one else waits for me like You do.
No one else loves me for eternity.
Maybe they do - but, it is You in them.

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They go everywhere but to You.
You are always first.
You will always be first.
And because of that You are mine.
They don't know yet what it is to possess You.
But they will.

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They don't know why You love them so.
They write songs of unworthiness.
They aren't able yet to open to You.
They don't know yet.
They are the only thing You want.
They don't know the endless well of love they possess
and that You wait for.
They don't know that is what You want;
that is more precious than anything else;
their human heart open to You.

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Their is no time.
That is why You wait.
That is why You have patience.
Actually, patience doesn't exist for You.
It is a human projection onto You.
You wait for us.
We are in time now and we need patience here.
I learn from You that time is your foreplay.

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I drink wine now to make others feel comfortable.
I don't need wine anymore
You have shown me.
You are now the wine and the fire that burns in me.
You have transformed my thoughts .
You have changed me from the inside.
You have made an average person into Your lover.
You have made me see who I am.
You have made me see why You love me.
You have allowed me to see the currency I can use in Your World.
And with this currency I can buy anything in all Your Worlds.

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[paul1234]

[font="arial]"Choosing To Love"[/font]

[font="Arial"]By Zach Wood[/font]

1 John 4:19

We love because he first loved us.

The last devotional I shared with you talked about God's crazy love for us through His son Jesus Christ. I still cannot help but think about how God loves us so much, yet, many choose not to love Him back. Am I saying some of us choose not to love Him? Well....possibly. Do we not all have times when we fail to show God love? Do we not have times when we completely go our own ways and refuse to show Him love and love others as well?

This passage I have shared is very short, but proves a powerful point. As Christians, we are called to love God for what He has done for us, but also are called to love others. If we fail to show love to others, we cannot love God in the way we are called to love. He desires for us to show love to Him and to others. Failing to do either of these acts of love is choosing not to love. You may think this is pretty elementary thinking, but if you take a moment to apply it to your life and your actions, do you really find yourself loving God and loving others?

Why in the world would we choose to love God, but then choose not to love other people as He has called us to do? Because people are all different and it becomes very challenging when personalities do not mesh and differences set in. You may have co-workers you cannot get a long with because of personality differences. You may not get along with your kids because you have different ideas of what is acceptable and unacceptable behavior. You may not get along with your spouse because you do have hold the same values and are constantly bickering because you cannot agree. You may not work well with another volunteer at church because you have different ideas how a program should be run. There are so many different situations and scenarios in which we do not get along with others. That is just part of learning to love others and get along with them. God never gave us permission to blow someone else off just because they do not agree with how we do things.

As I write this, I am even convicted in my own life how I do not love others as I need to. At work, at church and even in my own family, I tend to show more love to some than others just because of how my personality and differences work out in the various relationships. God calls me to love because He gave His own life to show me love.

If we claim to love God, we must show love to others. If we are to be effective witnesses for the Kingdom, we have no choice but to show God's love to others. Why would we not choose to love Him in return for all that He has done and continues to do for us?

I pray that your choice would willingly be to love God and love others as He has called us to do.

In are actions of love towards god and are fellow human being, we could introduce people to Christianity, put something on Christian websites, when someone does a search on Google lets say it will come up, do it say once a week on different sites around the world, Here an example.









no one comes to the Father if not through me.”







Friends, salvation can be found in no other person or path. It cannot be found in philosophy, in science, in achievements, in wealth, in family, in humanism, in Buddha, in Mohammed, or in anyone or anything else. Our world presents many options and paths—some of which even sound convincing—but the only way to the Father is through Jesus. The only hope of a resurrection is found in the one who was resurrected. The only hope of eternal life is in the eternal one who is the life. And the only truth in this world is found in the person of Christ, who has revealed to us the mysteries of God’s redemptive plan.



Jesus Christ is not only the focal point of all of scripture, but he is the point on which all of history revolves about..