Tag Archives: God’s Love

Valentine’s Day, 2016

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On this Valentine’s Day.You Are Loved
Remember.
You are loved.

You are a child of God, brought into the world intentionally… with a plan and purpose.

God wants you here. You are beloved by your Creator. God delights in you.

Shoot. Hard truth comes now. Crap!
You are lost in sin. Trapped in it.
Reality.

You do things you don’t want to do. You don’t do things you want to do. You fail to love, fully. To love God. To love others. To love yourself. Reality. For all of us.
Greater truth now. We need to get to this next. Now. Immediately.
Best truth. Game-changer. Life-changer!

Ready? GET THIS. Here it is…
YOU ARE REDEEMED BY JESUS.

Let’s say it again. At the very moment that sin wants to rush in.. to define you, to tear at you… to rip your self-worth and self-understanding apart… AT THAT VERY MOMENT: GRACE BREAKS IN INSTEAD. And YOU ARE LOVED BY THE INVENTOR, THE AUTHOR OF LOVE. So this truth NOW defines you: You are loved. And you are redeemed, by Jesus, in and through the Cross. And… this changes everything.

This. Changes. Everything.

It changes your self-understanding. Your reason for being here. Your sense of calling. Your grounding. Your direction. Your future. Your eternity.

And so, it changes, too … your motivation to love others. And your ability to receive THEIR love for you. And your ability to love YOURSELF.

It changes your heart.

This changes YOU.

Hear it. Know it. Jesus loves you. You are forgiven. You are free to be the person God brought you into the world to be.

This changes everything.

And, know this, too.. as an added bonus… You are sanctified and kept in faith by the Holy Spirit. You are empowered, called to share that same love with those around you. You get to love people! Not for what they can do for you, but because you know you are loved, and BECAUSE you know this, this love for others flows out of you naturally. It is the Spirit’s work in you. And there is great freedom and joy in this too.

So..
Don’t doubt this truth: You are loved. Jesus loves you.

Don’t doubt it! Don’t ever forget it.
Don’t ever let this reality stop defining you.
God wants you here.
And God is with you.

YOU. ARE. LOVED.

FOR THOSE WHO HURT. WHO GRIEVE. WHO DOUBT. WHO BELIEVE.

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Life is full. God is good.
Life is hard. God is good.

Sometimes, God shows up in powerful and obvious ways.

God is good.

Sometimes, though, I wonder where God is.

God seems unresponsive. Or uncaring. Or uninvolved … at least in the ways I would like Him to be.

In those moments, I need help believing… or trusting… that God is good.  

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And yet, I DO believe this to be true.

Even when God seems absent.

So, Lord… I believe. Help my unbelief.

For you ARE …  Good.

This I believe to be true, even when I do not. And this, too, is your gift.

And so… even as I wrestle with faith…
Even when the questions and the void seem bigger than the answers
or my definition of proof…. even then….  I know…  by your Spirit…    I KNOW…    that You …   are good.

Lord, I believe. Help my unbelief. For you are good.

Lord, I believe. Help my unbelief. For you are good.

You are good. You are Good.

You are …  Good.

You Are Loved (Valentine’s Day 2014)

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To those for whom this day is hard, know that you are loved. You Are Loved

To those who grieve, may you sense God with you in the midst of the tears and the memories.

To those who are alone, may you sense God’s presence, holding you in his sweet embrace.

To those who are angry, may you sense God’s calming presence as you sort out the feelings and let those that need to be expressed, be expressed… and may you be safe and heard… in doing so.

To those who are misunderstood, may you sense God’s listening ear.

To those who are afraid, may you sense God’s invitation to be strong in Him.

And may we all be Christ’s love to each other, on this day… and beyond.