A Fulfilled Life

As humans, we are so engrossed in our soul that we fail to realize that our spirit is dead within us (Ephesians 2:1). We instinctively know there is a missing ingredient within, but we ignore this fact much of our life.

This causes us to delve deeper into the realm of the soul - the thoughts of our mind, our fleshly choices and the tyrant of our emotions. We seek satisfaction in any way, time and place we can find it.

We refuse to believe anything, which does not make sense to our human understanding. We even perverted the Serenity Prayer to relate to the "god of our understanding."

As fallen humanity, we are so blinded by our pride and rebellion to the Truth of God's Word that we miss out on the blessings, which God wants to provide for each and every one of us right here and now, as well as in the future.

The power of God for salvation is freely given to everyone who chooses to believe, without regard to color, age, race, financial status and ethnic background (Romans 1:16).

Our righteous God reveals a fulfilled life in His love to those who choose to reject the counsel of our pride and rebellion; and instead, to have faith in His faithfulness (Romans 1:16-17).

Prayer:

Father God, You freely give all things to those who put their trust in You. You infuse us with Your joy, which is our strength to live a fulfilled life in this sin-cursed world. Even creation cries out for the revelation of Your sons, so that You will restore the former glory of Paradise to the earth.

Thank You for moving by Your Spirit in my life and giving me the faith of Your Son, Jesus Christ, to believe in You (Galatians 2:20). Thank You for showering me with Your love every moment of my day and teaching me to follow the direction of Your Spirit through each one of them. Dwelling in the center of Your will is the happiest place on earth.

Thought for the Day:

We can conqueror every negative aspect in this life, just because of God's love for us. - Romans 8:37-39

God's Inclusive Love

Authentic Believers have no desire to sin; however, the world, the devil and the flesh cause temptations for our body and soul, which are often hard to resist.

The good news here is that God gives us a way to escape any temptation (1 Corinthians 10:13). Temptations also sharpens our faith and work patience into our character (James 1:2-4).

Satan may bombard us with doubt and anxiety, but if we look to Christ His perfect love will cast out all of our fear (1 John 4:18).

Some people refuse to admit they are sinners; however, they are living in deception, and calling God a liar (1 John 1:8-10). Anyone willing to repent is quickly forgiven by God and cleansed from all iniquity.

Jesus is our advocate with our Father when we do sin, because He paid the penalty of our sin (1 John 2:1-2). This proves that God has nothing but love for us.

God is love, and when we abide in God, we abide in His love (1 John 4:16). In God’s love we have no fear. His love for us gives us confidence in His faithfulness.

Prayer:

Father God, You are with us, and that is all we need. We rejoice in our weakness, because then You can show Yourself strong through us. People see Christ’s power within us rather than our own abilities and adequacy (2 Corinthians 12:9).

We actually exult in our insufficiency, because we realize that we need to depend on You in every moment of our day to make us strong. Our attitude in our weakness is actually a testimony of Your love for us.

Thought for the Day:

When we succumb to temptation, we fail to avail our self of the escape, which God always supplies; and we ultimately disappoint our Father God. 
– 1 Corinthians 10:13

Overwhelming Love

Eros love is physical and human; Phileo love is what we feel for our friends; but Agape love comes from God. It does not depend on how we feel or even if we like the person or not. Agape is contingent only on Christ within us. God loved us while we were still vile sinners, and He calls us to allow Him to use us to love others in this same way (Romans 5:8).

We love God, because he first loved us and gave Himself for us as a ransom for our sins (1 Timothy 2:6). If we truly love Him, we will keep His commandments (John 14:15). God’s love for us does not depend on our lovableness, and does not require that we act in a loving manner. God’s love is unconditional; however, any negative behavior on our part will break His heart.

God would not love us any more if we walked in perfection before Him, and He does not love us any less if we fail unexpectedly (1 John 3:6; Hebrews 10:26). His love for us is contingent upon His dependability, not on our deportment. Christ’s death on the cross is love in action (John 3:16). If we accept this sacrifice as the payment for our sins, we are justified and have peace with God (Romans 5:1).

Although we all deserve an eternity of condemnation, at the moment of our salvation, our spirit is reborn and our over-riding desire for sin dies. We are in Christ, and He is now our whole life (Colossians 3:3-4). As authentic Believers, we no longer need to wonder if we are pleasing God or doing enough to earn His love, because Christ’s sacrifice already made us an acceptable member of His beloved family (Ephesians 1:6).

Prayer:

Father God, due to the saving work of Christ on the cross, we can draw near to You and enjoy Your overwhelming love, blessings and presence every moment of every day (James 4:8). We enjoy our continual fellowship with You. Our sins are forgiven and Christ in us makes us suitable to fellowship with You (Galatians 3:16). 

Remind us to set aside time for You every day and to remain in Your presence all day long regardless of the duties of family and employment. We give You all of the praise, glory and honor for everything we are, everything we accomplish and everything we have in this life.

Thought for the Day:

We enjoy the privilege of being near to God, because we made Him our sovereign Lord; He is our refuge, and we enjoy His overwhelming love and all of His generous benefits. – Psalm 73:28, 103:2