Love is... Part 11

Photo From "View from wits end" (Credit in the corner)

Love Never Fails... 




The biggest part of love is that it does not fail, ever! The true, pure form of love never ends or fails. It's always there, and does not lose its potency. This hits home the most for me when I relate to the fact that God is love. God will never fail you. 


"The Lord appeared to us in the past, saying: 'I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with unfailing kindness."
(Jeremiah 31:3)


This is one of my favorite verses, it defines who I am and my identity. "Everlasting Love" is a powerful phrase. It means that it is always at its full strength, it never began with something you did, and it will never end no matter what you do. It is infinite and it never fails. But the part that is convicting is that we are to love people in that way as well. To not have conditional love, where it started with them being good and ends with their mistake.


The most encouraging thing that I can think is that God is "Everlasting Love". Whenever I "mess up", "miss the mark", "sin", or "fall short", I become overwhelmed with guilt. Conviction that leads to repentance is a wonderful thing, but after you have repented guilt is purely from the Devil. When you feel guilty you run away from God, you are like the prodigal son who feels as if he cannot be his father's son again because he is so lowly. But God is that father who clothes his son and places a ring on his finger, he rejoices that his son came back, repented for what he did, and even though he is dirty he cleans him off and holds a feast.
This is Everlasting love. God sees every mistake you will make before and after you are "saved", and He still died for you. He knows that you will sin that day, but he still loves you. In will never end and it never started with a "good deed".


This is the type of love that never fails that we are expected to have as well. Not judging a person on their past, and to not lower our value or love for a person when they do something that hurts or disappoints us. You do not value a person on how they act or treat you, but you value them because the are a person.


The part after "love never fails" talks about how all the gifts people want to have will come to an end eventually, that they can all fail. But to be gifted with Love for others, that will never fail or go wrong.
I feel that most churches either push for gifts, or they will deny them completely. But the issue is that we want people to have prophecy, or the gift of tongues, and not the gift of love. The greatest gift of all the ones listed is love, it is the one that will not fail.


Instead of praying for tongues, maybe you should be praying harder for the gift of love. To grow in this area many hardships may come up to help your "love muscle" to grow.


I wanted to make this one short. If you just dwell on the principle in the Bible, and take another look at the past 10 parts, you can learn more for yourself than I can write down in a few days. So let's grow in love together, and grow in our knowledge of God's love as well.


Refining the faith,
-C.A.M. 

Love is... Part 10

Photo Credit: cute-pictures.blogspot

Love is... Always protecting, trusting, hoping, and preserving. 




So, we recently got through Valentines Day, the day that people either think is wonderful or horrible. I don't really agree with the way love is put forward for this, where men are required to give expensive gifts to women to prove that they care for them. Yet, it is a great time to reflect on the true nature of pure love. I focused on dwelling on God's love, it's eternal, unselfish, and unblemished. There's one more part of the Love series after this one, so let's make this a good one! 




Someone who "always protects, always trusts, always hopes, (and) always preserves" sounds like the ideal person! This is the love of God, this is the love that Christ showed us, and this is the love that the Holy Spirit empowers us to be able to show to others. "Agape" is the love in which the one giving it has no conditions and no expectations from loving the other person. This is the word used in Greek when describing God's love. It is pure, not sexual or romantic, and is simply caring for someone, no matter what they do or don't do. This is the love you show to your Enemies, and everyone else, not expecting them to love you back but loving them anyways. It's because of God's Agape that we are able to love Him.
"We love, because He first loved us." (1 John 4:19)


Let's try to just go through each part of this section, one by one. 




"Always Protects" 


To "Always protect" reminds me of a service man or a knight. The Police, EMTs, and Fire Men are there to protect the general public. They put others lives before their own and work hard to keep us safe and alive. They stand by, waiting for us to call on them. They are pretty much the closest thing we have to a superhero, but instead of a "Bat Signal" we call 911. I realize that they are not perfect, we all make mistakes, but they are people who live the life of "Always protect". 
The other thing I think of is a Knight, like the ones from our Childhood books. They fought monsters, fire breathing dragons, and rescued the town and the princess. In the books for the older audience they will probably die fighting. While the people mourn and honor them, they do not care that they died if it was to save another, and the only regret is that they are no longer alive to protect them. Knights of our dream land are "chivalrous", and little boys want to be like them!


At least, they used to. Being blunt here, but this is not a value that we are taught anymore. To open doors, ward off bad guys, and come to the rescue of women is not as important. Little boys like the guns and swords, but a lot of them think that the bad guy is cool! Most start watching MTV at a young age and want to be the "Player' when they grow up. These are the people who wound those around them, emotionally and physically. Men were created stronger to protect women, yet this is being lost. Now, women can also be noble and protect! They protect family and friends. I think that getting the value of protecting others at any cost needs to come back into the trends. 


"Regular" people don't die in battle and fight fires to protect, and this applies to those who do as well. We protect the feelings of others, their emotions. To love and protect people can be interfering when someone is being bullied. When you see someone being hurt, or who is potentially going to get hurt, you jump in and help them and protect them. In "modern times" we are able to do this more than we know. So, let's take a stand and protect those around us. 




"Always Trusts"


This one sounds very difficult to me, and probably to most people. To always trust? God, don't you know how much I have been hurt? How can I possibly trust people? To trust a person is extremely difficult for those of us who has been "burned" in the past. Example? One of the first times I did a "trust fall" they thought it would be funny to drop me on purpose...Onto the hard, rocky ground. I don't like trust falls anymore. But I had to do one recently with my roommates, and although it was hard it taught me a lesson. 


They caught me. Despite what happen years ago, they still caught me. Because we loved each other, and we did not want to see one another fall. To really love a person you need to trust them. Being suspicious, judgmental, or just thinking that they will let you down and have some sort of fault, drives a wedge in any relationship. It's a delicate balance, I think, because you both need to trust people, but do not rely on them to be perfect for you. Knowing a person has faults, and also not distrusting them for those faults. You love through mistakes and know we all make them, but still trust them. 


I know this may all sound confusing, but it's hard to put feelings into words. You also need to be a trustworthy person yourself, someone who is not back-stabbing, or sneaky, or that hides things from people. Trust and be trustable. 




"Always Hopes"


To always hope, in my opinion, is to see the light in every situation. It''s the opposite of despair. You are hopeful for the future, you have hope that things will get better in the most dire of times, and you hope the best for others as well. Love is about showing it to others, but it is also something internal. You always trust people and you always have hope. To be a hopeful, uplifting person draws people to you. Being an optimist makes people around you positive as well. 


When a person is in despair and you can give them hope, that is showing love to them. You make them see that things will get better, you tell them you are praying for them and hope for the best, and you want things to go in their best interests. And, to have hope, you trust God and love Him and believe in the love He has for you. 




"Always Preserves"


We preserve rain forests, trees, animal life, and human lives. We protect them so that we can preserve them. It's keeping something safe so that it is able to grow. Like a nursery for plants, or children for that matter! It is a safe place where they can mature. We should be a safe place that people can go to when they need to heal and can stay when they are tender and growing. This is more of a Maternal or Paternal instinct, when your parents want to keep you safe for your own good so that you can become a responsible and stable adult. 


God, as our Father, shows this aspect, as well as all of them of course. He wants to nurture us and help us grow. We should be this way towards others. Protecting them from harm, and helping them grow. It's shows love and value for a person when you care for their well being and development. 




I think that these are very important for love, and we all have our own definition for the words. This is my opinion on what these mean, and I hope that it can get your mind going on what you think of these. Just remember that God has all of these traits, in their perfect, pure forms, and so does Christ and the Holy Spirit. And every time that The Bible says to love another person, it means all of these things. Love is a deep feeling, and I am excited to be able to wrap this up with next times final word on Love.


For now, let's dwell on these and continue to grow in Agape.  


Refining the Faith, 
-C.A.M.

Can You Hear It?

So I will betaking a break from the Love series today to write about something that has heavily been on my mind.

Chasing after your calling.

I will be the first one to admit here that I had been running away from what God had for me. In my life I was pretty much slapped in the face with the fact that I was running away. Why?

Fear of Man.

Fear of failure.

Fear of the unknown.

Issues of trust.

Self doubt.

Insecurity.

The list just keeps going on.

I came to the wake up call a little while ago, and again just the other day. The first time I realized that I was running away completely.

I have known since a young age, and had it confirmed several times, that I was to be a writer, speaker, counselor, role model, and leader. But I had come against the negativity of the world so many times that I had practically given up on it and wanted to pursue something else, something that would not be doubted or mocked. Strangers and close friends alike told me outright and subtly that there was no way that I could be a writer. "It does not make money." "Your grammar sucks too much." "You are just making your calling 'great' out of pride." "You just want to be a writer so that you can stay home all day and do whatever you want, wasting your life!"

I was used to these comments most of my life. Despite the fact that writing was my passion I was told it was impossible. I slowly started to believe everything that was told to me. After all, I was not in college like other people or working a steady job. "I must be a washed up looser... Maybe my calling is something different! I should pursue something else!"

My year at the Honor Academy helped me come to the re-realization that it was my calling and I needed to pursue it whole heartedly! I wanted to stay another year there, but I got the thumbs down from God and went home instead.

Once I got home I looked into colleges and programs instead.

I was in California visiting some friends when, with many tears, I realized that I was just using these things, although good things, to run away! When I went from there to Texas I got a word from a trusted friend that confirmed my feelings. "You know what you are supposed to do, stop running away from it! Run towards it and do not walk!" This struck my entire being!

Once I was home I was walking towards it... Not running... Just the other day I realized that slowly I was becoming dead inside, losing who I really was. Something needed to change and I am starting again with a new outlook. RUN.

Isaiah 40:31 (b)

"They will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not grow faint."

I want to be a runner, a marathon runner! Boldly striving for what I am supposed to do! Because my dream of being a best selling author may seem big to everyone else, but to God it seems small! I made the image for this post my background so that I can be daily reminded of it, I suggest that if you need a background for your computer you make it an encouraging verse and change it every now and then..

So I want to take time to just encourage you.

Whatever your dream is, whatever you think your calling may be, it is so small compared to what God has and do not let anyone, ANYONE, including your friends, family, strangers, the Enemy, and yourself, say that it is impossible! Because all things are possible through Christ Jesus who gives you strength! (Philippians 4:13)

Your "Calling" is just a fancy way of saying "what God is asking you to do", you have the free will to choose it, but you also have it as your "destiny". Go after what you think it is, and if the plan changes then God will tell you and point you to the right way. But do not waste time sitting around asking if it really is or not, just do it and the information will come when it needs to.

Another thing is that when you are at your low point, we all have them, that is when the Enemy strikes!

"Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour." (1 Peter 5:8)

I was just in the jaw of the lion... I was hopeless, joyless, insecure, and depressed. I was being eaten slowly. But through the Grace of God, the strength and love, I was able to escape. (Praise the Lamb!)

So be alert and choose joy in all circumstances! Do not let your guard down and keep your armor on! Because like Daniel God will save you from the Lion.

"Submit to God, resist the Devil, and he will flee from you." (James 4:7)

Another thing. While you are chasing the dream and/or in the Lion Pit, the Enemy will try to convince you that the New Man you are in Christ is not the real you. This is a lie from the very pits of Hell! The new man is the real you! Do not ever forget or doubt that! You are a new creation, you are a child of the most high God, you are saved and forgiven, and you are not who you once were! There I times I need to say,

"I am the Child and servant and new creation of the I AM, that is who I am!"

Do not loose your identity in Christ.

Run and do not walk, keep on your armor, be alert, and stay joyful~!

"Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)

This may be short, but that is what I wanted to write today. I pray that you take this to heart when you read it.

Refining the faith,

-C.A.M.

Partial Photo Credit: http://www.art.com/products/p13789733-sa-i2757472/bob-winsett-silhouette-of-woman-trail-running-co.htm