Sin Derails Love

"Love seems to be constantly derailed by sin." (p. 39, B0ld Love, Allender & Longman)

Don't let sin derail you today. Don't let sin keep you from loving and moving forward.

You have been warned. It will. Will you? Stay on track. Stay "in" love.

Love & Power

"Power without love is reckless and abusive, love without power is sentimental and anemic." Martin Luther King, Jr.

Dr. King said this in one of his last speeches. I think he had wearied in his work, and this words were learned through hardship and heartache.

Loving & Agreeing

C.S. Lewis quotes Emerson in his book The Four Loves: "Do you love me? means Do you see the same truth? ~ Or at least, 'Do you care about the same truth?'" (p. 66)

He goes on to say, "...We picture lovers face to face but Friends side by side; their eyes look ahead." (ibid)

When you love someone, you look in the same direction with them. You care about what they think, what they see as truth to them. It is important to be united in your causes, your truth. But it is more important that you care about what they think, than that you agree with what they think.

Learn to Love ~ Because Love is Not Natural

"There is an enormous drive within the fallen human personality that impedes the process of learning to love and an equally powerful force outside of every person that labors to destroy any efforts to love...Complacency and presumption work hand-in-hand to blind even Christians to the importance of love and the inherent battle involved in learning to love. If we are to learn to love, we must begin with an acknowledgment that love is not natural and that love's failure is not easy to admit." (p. 37, Bold Love, Allender & Longman)

Some Hard Questions

Dan Allender and Tremper Longman compel us to ask ourselves some hard questions in their book, Bold Love: "Is love the most prized possession in our home, the most cherished character trait we pursue, and the most central lesson we teach in all that we do?" (p. 36)

These are good questions to ask yourself and your family today. We teach and pursue all kinds of things. Let's assess where we are and where we are going, and how.

They remind us: "Love was never meant to be so incidental." (ibid)

Forgiving Love

"Love is not possible, at least for long, without the healing work of forgiveness." (p. 28, Bold Love, Allender & Longman) Later the writers expound: "Forgiving love is the inconceivable, unexplainable pursuit of the offender by the offended for the sake of restored relationship with God, self, and others." (p. 29)

If you are to continue in a loving relationship, forgiveness must be a part of the equation, part of the relationship, a part of your attitude, a part of you. It will take a part of you and give it to another. Forgiveness is the air needed for loving relationships.

The authors offer their premise: "I will not live with purpose and joy unless I love; I will not be able to love unless I forgive and I will not forgive unless my hatred is continually melted by the searing truth and grace of the gospel...Forgiveness is even harder than we think it is - but infinitely more life-giving. If love offers life, forgiveness enables love." (p. 30)

Demanding Occupation

"Love...it's something we all want and, in our better moments, want to give. Yet there is no more demanding occupation than love." (p. 13, Bold Love, Allender & Longman)

We all want it. Not all of us want to give it.

Love demands of us, perhaps what we do not want to give.

Let loves demands show you the way.

Let Love Draw You

"Love, or even the hope of love, draws each person into the battle of life." (p. 26, Bold Love, Allender & Longman)

Let love draw you into life today.

It's a battle. Let love be your aim, method, and motivation.

"The love for equals is a human thing - of friend for friend...It is to love what is loving and lovely. The world smiles.

The love for the less fortunate is a beautiful thing - the love for those who suffer, for those who are poor, the sick, the failures, the unlovely. This is compassion, and it touches the heart of the world.

The love for the more fortunate is a rare thing - to love those who succeed where we fail, to rejoice without envy...the world is always bewildered by its saints.

And then there is the love for the enemy - love for the one who does not love you but mocks, threatens, and inflicts pain....This is God's love. It conquers the world."

Frederick Buechner, The Magnificent Defeat

Hard Heart ≠ Love

"Hardness of heart is the great enemy of love, since everything depends on receptivity and openness." (p. 863, New Spirit Filled Life Bible note)

I don't know about you, but sometimes, my heart is hard. This makes my heart not friendly to love. This makes me unfriendly...unloving. Watch for that hardness of heart to creep in. It will. A soft heart is open and receptive to life and others. It doesn't lock out either.

Commanded - Enabled

"God's word commands us to love (John 13:34,35).

God's word promises that He will enable us to do what He commands us to do (I John 5:14,15)."

[Promises, Bill Bright, Day 6]

What He commands us to do, He promises to fulfill. He provides for us what we need to do/give.

He will provide. He will keep His promises.

It's All About Love & Relationship

My husband remarked today that Jesus only called us to love God and love man. (Mark 12:28-31 & Matthew 22:35-40)

These are both about love and relationship. One is not about religion and the other about relationship. We should only be in loving relationships. We should only be feeling love. How are you doing?

Love is Stubborn

"Love is stubborn." (Love is a Verb, p. 82)

That statement hit me.

It could sound negative, or be perceived as not complimentary.

But, being stubborn can be good, if it keeps you "there," if it keeps you committed.

Stubborn in love, I like that.

Being stubborn in some things may not be good.

But, being in stubborn in love, now that's a good thing.

Loving Well, Loving First

John & Stasi Eldredge conclude in their book Captivating, that we have an Enemy. And that "Our Enemy despises relationship, hates love in any form." (p. 211) But also continues with the fact that we have a God who calls us to do many things, "but loving well always comes first." (p. 212)

Remember that next time you get sidetracked: Loving Well Always Comes First.

The world will tell you a lot more other things that it thinks should come first: promptness, importance, prestige, pride, position, fame, etc. Don't let it trick you. Don't let the other things get in front of loving first.

Offering Love

John & Stasi Eldredge offer a prayer in their book, Captivating:

"May this day be an offering of love poured out before You on the altar of my life."

What a great prayer for us today. Offer your lives as an outpouring of life.

They go on to say, "Your life is a Love Story..."

Understanding that it may help you to remember to implant and leave the LOVE in your Story!

(page 203)

Love = Beauty

In John & Stasi Eldredge's book, Captivating, they say, "A woman becomes beautiful when she knows she's loved." (p. 114)

That made me think of all the beautiful brides I've seen. When a person is in love, they are radiant, more beautiful. Love brings them beauty. On the contrary, beauty does not bring love. But, love does bring beauty on the person. The lover thinks they are beautiful. Others see they are beautiful too. Sometimes the loved one may get a glimpse of it. They go on to say, "The beauty of a woman is first a soulful beauty....The essence of a woman is Beauty." (p. 132)

Beauty Tip: LOVE!

Two Things

Two things I'm learning lately:

1. I'm insignificant

2. I'm impotent

I am just a spec of dust on this great big planet, and I have no power in this gigantic sphere.

This may sound depressing, but realizing this is good, because it liberates me with truth.

It also compels me in a greater, newer way to commit to love. Because love is the only way to be significant and to bring about change. It's the greatest power on earth.

I Corinthians 13

v7- love endures all things

v8- love never fails

v13-love is the greatest of all

Reaffirm Your Love

II Corinthians 2:8 urges us to "reaffirm your love to him." Paul is urging believers to reaffirm their love to one person. In the previous verse he says "you ought rather to forgive and comfort" them. Think today how you can reaffirm your love to someone. We ought rather to forgive and comfort them, and reaffirm our love to them. Instead we usually walk away, harbor a resentment, and leave them uncomforted. Today is a good day to reaffirm your love to a fellow human being. It's better for them. It's better for us. It's better for all around us.