Love of God

"Love of God overflow…permeate all my soul." I heard that lyric repeating over and over in my head this morning. At first, I just kind of sang along but didn’t think much of it but then it caught hold in my spirit. I realized that I needed that to happen. I needed God’s love to overtake me to the point that nothing else was important. You see, this morning, I was in one of those places where my focus was on everything else but that. I was rushing and annoyed and the cares of the world were pressing in on me. I looked around and nothing looked right to me. I just wanted to get in my bed and go back to sleep. I wasn’t listening to Christmas carols or planning my holiday trip. Nope, I was focused on my feelings and other people’s issues. But as I heard that line, "love of God overflow…permeate all my soul," I started to yearn for that takeover. God then told me to let His love replace the other things I was holding on to because His fix is better than my feelings or plans. Some of you have had some rough days leading up to Christmas. You may have lost a family member recently and you can’t get in the holiday spirit or your finances are in such a mess that you don’t know how you will get gifts for people. You’re singing Bah Humbug instead of Jingle Bells. But today, God wanted me to encourage you to let His love overtake you.

1 John 4: 9 -12 gives us a clear picture of God’s love and it’s one that we need to grab hold to. “God showed how much He loved us by sending His one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through Him. This is real love—not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.  Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other. No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and His love is brought to full expression in us.” (NLT) You see, God’s love is perfect and it covers a multitude of sins. It requires us to love others because He loved us. The NIV says it is made complete in us. And this is at the center of what God wants you to know today. You don’t have to have everything figured out. You don’t have to understand why people do what they do. You don’t even have to know what’s coming next in your life. All you really need to know is that He loves you with a perfect love. He loved you enough to send Jesus, the real reason for this Christmas season. And Romans 8 reminds us that NOTHING can separate us from that love.

As we go through these last few days of 2014, let’s decide to love. Let’s agree to both give it and receive it. Understand doing that may require you to do some things that make you uncomfortable such as forgive, move forward, hug someone you don’t like, let go. God reminded me that He loved me when I was not worthy of it, so I have to do the same to others. But He went on to say that His love is enough to help me do the hard things. He didn’t tell me not to be wise or walk in truth, but He did say that if I will let Him, His love can heal, restore and renew. So this morning I choose to respond to him and say “God, you’re all I have so let your love overflow in me and permeate my entire soul. “ I invite you to join me and release whatever has held you captive to God’s love and let it cover those things.  You will find yourself free in Him and less concerned with what came before. “God is love, and all who live in love, live in God, and God lives in them.” (1 John 4: 15 NLT)

AMEN.

JESUS

This morning I asked God for a right now, relevant word for you. He answered with one word and trust me, it doesn’t get any more relevant. What was the word? JESUS. That was it. That’s what He said…JESUS! Okay…what about Jesus? What do you want me to say about Jesus? And He said it again…JESUS! Right then I realized that Jesus was enough. Think about it. What more do you need other than Jesus? Today, God wants you to remember why you have the opportunity for healing and redemption. He wants you to remember why every knee must bow and tongue confess. He wants you to remember why you have life and grace when you so easily could have had death and condemnation. It’s all because of Jesus. As the Christmas holidays quickly approach, God doesn’t want the gift giving to supersede the praise offering. He doesn’t want the family time to overwhelm the worship time. And He most certainly doesn’t want the story of Santa Claus to overshadow the story of Christ’s birth. Will you make the effort today and every day to proclaim the name of Jesus?

I asked God to help me find in His word a scripture passage to reinforce what He was saying today. He reminded me that He sent Jesus because He loved His people so much. He loved YOU so much that He wanted you to live an abundant life. So He sent me to the 4^th chapter of 1^st John. As I was trying to pull out the verse that He wanted me to use, I felt led to give you a quite a few.

⁹ This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. ¹⁰ This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. ¹¹ Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. ¹² No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.

¹³ This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit. ¹⁴ And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. ¹⁵ If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. ¹⁶ And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.

God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. ¹⁷ This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. ¹⁸ There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.

¹⁹ We love because he first loved us. (vs. 9-19 NIV)

Jesus is the reason for EVERY season. He is the one that will keep, advocate for, and protect you in every situation. If you will keep your eyes on Him, He will keep you in perfect peace and He will guide you to that next step, that answer, and that purpose that you are seeking. He is all that you need! Will you make the effort today and every day to proclaim the name of Jesus?

Sing along with me! “God sent His Son, they called Him Jesus. He came to love, heal and forgive. He lived and died to buy my pardon. An empty grave is there to prove my Savior lives.  Because He lives, I can face tomorrow. Because He lives, all fear is gone. Because I know, He holds the future and life is worth the living just because He lives.”

AMEN

A Day to be Glad!

“This is the day the Lord has made, we will rejoice and be glad in it!”  How many times have you heard that scripture quoted at the beginning of a service? Thousands, right? But how many times have you lived it? Are you living it right now? Did you get up with the purpose to rejoice that God had given you another day and just be glad? I will admit that when my alarm went off at 4:45, there was no joyful singing! It was more like a grunt and a whine. But as I went through my morning and waited for God to give me a word, I had to start repeating that verse to get going. The world, the news, your job, your situation, your family, can put you in a place where joy is the last emotion that you feel. But today, God wanted me to remind you that He is Lord, He has given you this new day, and it’s time to be glad about it. Today, He told me to just share Psalm 118 with you and let Him minister to you directly. It has become far too easy to look for encouragement in people instead of in the Lord. I don’t care what you’re going through, how tired you are, what mountains you are facing, His Word can get you through any situation.  So I encourage you to read this word and be reminded of just who God is to you.

 1-4 Thank God because he’s good,
    because his love never quits.
Tell the world, Israel,
    “His love never quits.”
And you, clan of Aaron, tell the world,
    “His love never quits.”
And you who fear God, join in,
    “His love never quits.”

5-16 Pushed to the wall, I called to God;
    from the wide open spaces, he answered.
God’s now at my side and I’m not afraid;
    who would dare lay a hand on me?
God’s my strong champion;
    I flick off my enemies like flies.
Far better to take refuge in God
    than trust in people;
Far better to take refuge in God
    than trust in celebrities.
Hemmed in by barbarians,
    in God’s name I rubbed their faces in the dirt;
Hemmed in and with no way out,
    in God’s name I rubbed their faces in the dirt;
Like swarming bees, like wild prairie fire, they hemmed me in;
    in God’s name I rubbed their faces in the dirt.
I was right on the cliff-edge, ready to fall,
    when God grabbed and held me.
God’s my strength, he’s also my song,
    and now he’s my salvation.
Hear the shouts, hear the triumph songs
    in the camp of the saved?
        “The hand of God has turned the tide!
        The hand of God is raised in victory!
        The hand of God has turned the tide!”

17-20 I didn’t die. I lived!
    And now I’m telling the world what God did.
God tested me, he pushed me hard,
    but he didn’t hand me over to Death.
Swing wide the city gates—the righteous gates!
    I’ll walk right through and thank God!
This Temple Gate belongs to God,
    so the victors can enter and praise.

21-25 Thank you for responding to me;
    you’ve truly become my salvation!
The stone the masons discarded as flawed
    is now the capstone!
This is God’s work.
    We rub our eyes—we can hardly believe it!
This is the very day God acted—
    let’s celebrate and be festive!
Salvation now, God. Salvation now!
    Oh yes, God—a free and full life!

26-29 Blessed are you who enter in God’s name—
    from God’s house we bless you!
God is God,
    he has bathed us in light.
Festoon the shrine with garlands,
    hang colored banners above the altar!
You’re my God, and I thank you.
    O my God, I lift high your praise.
Thank God—he’s so good.” (Psalm 118 MSG)

Is that not good?! Did it remind you of what He has done in your life? Did it cause you to reflect on how many times God has met you right where you are? He’s so good and His love never quits. So make a decision today to rejoice and be glad in it!

Amen…