The Greatest Love Story Ever Told

"How delightful is your love, my sister, my bride! How much more pleasing is your love than wine, and the fragrance of your perfume more than any spice!"  -Song of Solomon 4:10

"Go and proclaim in the hearing of Jerusalem: 'This is what the LORD says: "'I remember the devotion of your youth, how as a bride you loved me and followed me through the wilderness, through a land not sown."'" -Jeremiah 2:2

All throughout scripture a beautiful love story is interwoven between all of humanity and her bridegroom, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  Every great love story has this plot of the handsome prince saving his princess, fighting off evil enemies in order to rescue her and gain the chance to win her hand.  In modern times, Beauty and the Beast, Allie and Noah, and Bella and Edward have been the forefront characters... but all great love stories involve a certain mystery, a certain magic, and a certain struggle that the man must endure and overcome to win the heart of his bride.  And continue to win it.

Jesus' death and resurrection on the cross was payment for every sin on this earth.  No one is without sin, and so we desperately needed a Savior who would be willing to lay down His life for us so we would not have to endure eternal death.

In this, as we realize just a piece of what kind of sacrifice was required, we learn to love a God who gave up His Son Jesus so that we wouldn't have to die.  Every great story has a derivative of this narrative; that's what makes it so great, and so compelling. 

As the story goes, Jesus is coming back for His bride one day, in a glorious wedding ceremony.  "I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband." -Revelation 21:2

But in order for Jesus to return for His bride, we have to be ready.  "Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready." -Revelation 19:7

Do you know your Lord and Savior Jesus Christ?  Pray that He would reveal Himself to you, and that He would win over your heart. We need to be found ready, so that His glory can be revealed in all those who believe in Him - His bride, the Church. 

The Enemy's Schemes

“Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.” -Ephesians 6:11

Have you ever noticed the verse above talks about the enemy’s “schemes”? I used to think the verse said, “Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil.”  But, it actually says, “Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.”  “What is a scheme?” you might say.  Well, according to the Dictionary.com, a scheme is a “plan, design, or program of action to be followed”. 

Why it is important to make this distinction between the enemy and his “schemes”?  We know that the enemy can’t be everywhere all the time, (while God is everywhere all the time) so it makes sense that he would put a “plan, design, or a program” in place to act on his behalf. He works hard to put schemes in place during our childhood, because this is the time in our lives where we are being “programmed”, either for success or failure in every area of life.

What are the enemy’s schemes?  Jesus said, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy” (John 10:10), so anything to do with stealing, killing, and destroying our relationships, purpose, money, and even our lives would be the enemy’s main intent toward us. But, how he does it is quite smart - he uses people in our lives to carry out these schemes - often the people closest to us - without them even knowing.  Many relationships have been destroyed for lack of understanding of the enemy’s schemes.

So how do we outwit Satan?  We can outwit him through Jesus and through the power of forgiveness.

“Anyone you forgive, I also forgive. And what I have forgiven—if there was anything to forgive - I have forgiven in the sight of Christ for your sake,  in order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes.”  -2 Cor 2:11

Are you aware of the enemy’s schemes?  Make sure you are aware, so that you can act in forgiveness.  We need to outwit the enemy’s schemes so that God can fulfill His purposes in our lives.

Unconditional Blessing, Unconditional Honor

“Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.”  -Romans 12:14



If you’ve spent any time in Christian circles, you’ve likely heard a sermon preached on blessing our enemies and praying for those who curse us. (Luke 6:28) We talk about blessing as it relates to people who are different than us, aka, sinners, or the unrighteous.  But how often on a regular basis do we get to mingle with people who are COMPLETELY different than us, unless we started hanging out at bars, strip clubs, or mosques?  And, how often does someone who is more like us rub us the wrong way at church? How do we respond? Do we actually know how to bless someone we disagree with, like Jesus did?



Our culture is pretty different than Eastern Jewish culture was back then.  Our culture is very much based on a performance-mindset - that is, “If you do what I want, I’ll bless you.”  This idea comes through in our parenting styles, our management, and our pastoral care.  No doubt about it there is consequence for poor or bad behavior.  But, in the Jewish culture they understood that blessing was a given.  You bless the person because they are a human being, created by God.  You believe the best for them.  You pray for them.  As far as honor was concerned, they honored people because of the position they held, not because of good or bad behavior, (not to say they didn’t confront them.) (Matthew 18:15) But, in our culture, I think we have it backwards. We’re called to bless, not withhold blessing based on performance.  In reality, we should honor everyone, no matter who they are. 



True love isn’t love if it’s conditional - true love is very hard. When we are offended or hurt by something, we naturally shrink back in self-protection.  To be possible, unconditional blessing requires the cross - it requires Jesus.



Are you able to bless others unconditionally?  When someone hurts you, instead of putting walls up, try blessing them instead. This isn’t condoning out of order behavior - but a recognition of the person in spite of their behavior. Pray and ask God how He might have you bless someone today.

The Greatest Gift

"For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." -Romans 6:23
 
Have you ever seen the movie It's a Wonderful Life?  It has to be one of the greatest American movies of all time, released in 1946.

The film stars George Bailey, a man whose dire circumstances result in a depression so bad he makes up his mind to take his own life on Christmas Eve.  Just as he is about to jump off a bridge, George's guardian angel, Clarence Odbody, makes himself known to George and intervenes on his behalf. Clarence then takes George on a journey,  showing him the impact his life has had on others and how their community would've been vastly different if George hadn't been born. George realizes that his life has immense value, no matter his circumstances.

We are so blessed to live in a country where we can celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ as a national holiday. His birth, His death, and His resurrection made it possible for us to have the gift of eternal life.

"He is before all things, and in him all things hold together." -Col 1:17
 
When we receive this precious gift, when we confess our sins and believe that Jesus died for our sins, we then carry this same gift of hope, love, grace, truth, and salvation wherever we go. God sends us as His representatives to a hurting world where His life and hope are needed. When we realize Jesus is the hope of our salvation, and when we realize just a piece of the depth of his love for us, we realize how much we matter. Jesus wouldn't have given His life for us if ours didn't matter to Him.

Do you know for certain you have received the gift of Jesus' salvation? Ask Him into your life today if you aren't quite sure. The gift of His son Jesus is the best gift we can receive in this life, and is the best gift we can give to others.

Sweet Surrender

"Here is a trustworthy saying: If we died with him, we will also live with him" - 2 Timothy 2:11

What does it mean to surrender? In many contexts, surrendering has a negative connotation – one that implies resignation, abandonment, or defeat.  But, in the Christian sense, surrender is actually a good thing.  One definition of surrender means, "to give up in favor of another".*

When we surrender our lives to Christ, we give up our own way of doing things and favor His will over our own. In order for us to do this, we have to be able to trust Him.  Trusting in God’s love is the only way to experiencing the fullness of our new life in Him.

Before the Apostle Paul was a disciple of Jesus, he was a powerful persecutor of the disciples.  He was intent on stopping the spread of the gospel.  But, one day as he was on the road to Damascus he was suddenly surrounded by a bright light.  He fell to the ground and heard a voice say, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute Me?" He was blinded for three days, but after this experience, he became one of the most fervent disciples, writing a good bit of the New Testament.  He surrendered to Jesus and the message of His salvation. (Acts 9:3–9)

There is something that happens to us when we let go and let God. When we trust Him - when we let Him take the wheel.  Even if we’ve chosen Christ in our hearts, we still need to relinquish our rights to Him.  As we recognize the depth of His sacrifice, we become ever more willing to do whatever He asks us to do so that others can experience His love. 

"For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God." -Col 3:3

Is there anything holding you back from giving God everything?  As a loving Father, He desires to bring us to the place of saying, “God, you can have it all for the purpose of Your glory revealed in me.” Ask God to help you surrender to His love today.

* http://www.thefreedictionary.com/surrender

Silos

"For none of us lives for ourselves alone, and none of us dies for ourselves alone." -Romans 14:7

Have you ever thought about the fact that your life matters? Sometimes we can get into the mindset that it's just us, all alone by ourselves, and that what we do doesn't affect other people. But, if you were born into this world, it took someone else to bring you here! Even if we don't think so, we have the ability to affect others, directly or indirectly.
 
My husband and I had attended a marriage conference where the teacher challenged us to remain faithful to the covenant, (or promise), we had made to each other - not just on behalf of our own family - but on behalf of our culture and the world at large. "We have a significant problem in America," he said. "If the family breaks down, the rest of society breaks down." (Paraphrased) This is a principle taught in modern secular sociology.
 
In American culture, we tend to think that our choices really don't affect those around us. We think of ourselves as silos. "Oh I can do that, it's not going to affect anyone but me," we say. But the fact is our choices (or lack of choices) do affect other people. We aren't really silos - we are more like trees, connected and interwoven amidst one another.
 
Jesus said, "I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in Me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing." -John 15:5 Trees and branches have root systems to gain nourishment. When we are connected to Jesus, He becomes our life source. We are all connected, through Him.
 
What if you are the one to help someone in need? If you don't step out, that person may never be helped! What if you are the one to free an entire nation, like Joseph? If he didn't pass the tests God gave him, he wouldn't have been in a position to help the entire nation of Israel during the famine. (Gen 41:56)
 
Even though we may not want to admit it, what we do affects our family, our friends, our cultures, our communities, our cities, our country, and the world. It's not something to make us afraid or feel bad, but it reminds us that our lives really do matter. Do you know that your life matters to others today?



God Doesn't Play Favorites

"Then Peter began to speak: 'I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism, but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right.'" -Acts 10:34 & 35
 
All throughout the history of the world, things have happened that are less than ideal. People have hurt people and there have been wars. Class warfare, discrimination, and racism have existed and still exist today. In the Kingdom of God however, God plays no favorites. He loves each of us the same, much more than we will ever know. (Eph 3:17-19)

Sometimes we may think that God's blessing or approval is only reserved for "special people"; that it's based on God's criteria of random characteristics unbeknownst to us. But the fact is that each of us can choose to be one of God's favored ones, as we chose Him to be the author of the book of our lives. My husband and I always tell each other, "You're my favorite," because we've chosen the other, and we want them to know how much they are loved. 

From the beginning of the world, God gave us a gift. He gave us the gift of free will. Sometimes we use it to glorify Him. Other times, we use this gift of choice for selfish desires, and sometimes make bad choices. But, we can choose righteously. We can choose love over hate. We can choose freedom over bondage. And, we can choose how favored or close to God we want to be. The only thing separating us from God or bringing us closer to Him is our own will.

God instructs His followers to follow His example. He wants us to remain unconditional to those we encounter. There is no barrier between God and His love. Sometimes what exists between us and our sharing God's love with others is the fears, attitudes, and preconceived ideas we have that were passed down to us from others, or from things that have happened in our own lives. But, in the book of James He makes it clear that followers of Christ should not show favoritism, to anyone. "My brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favoritism." -James 2:1
 
As we come to realize just a little revelation of God's love for us, we realize how much we are loved and favored as His children.  We chose Him and love Him more. Do you know you are God's favored one today?