There
is no greater love
than
to
lay down one’s life for one’s friends.
Scripture
John
15
10 When
you obey my commandments, you remain in my love, just as I obey my
Father’s commandments and remain in his love.
11 I
have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy.
Yes, your joy will overflow!
Observation
This
passage is today's Sunday School lesson that normally we would be
going over at church, but today in a few minutes, my very good friend
Orville Renner will be leading our group today online via Google
Hangout!
Kathy
was reading yesterday preparing for today's Sunday School lesson and
she came to me with the Sunday School Study Guide in her hand and she
said, “I want to read this to you.”
Kathy
read out loud to me,
“Jesus
did not leave the command to love nebulous or vague. He directed us
to love people in the specific way He loved. How did Jesus show His
love? He gave. He forgave. He pardoned. He was gracious, kind,
merciful, sacrificial, and intentional. When you love people as Jesus
does, you begin to break down their defenses. The spark of relational
love is found in unforseen moments of love.”
Then
she said, “This is what we have to do with “_________” . She
was talking about someone in our family who has been so hard for us
to have a good relationship with. This person has been so hard for us
to win over with our love. She said, “We just have to figure out
how to show this person how much we love him.”
We
are not going to give up!
Maybe
you have some difficult people in your life too! I hope John 15:9-14
encourages you not to give up on loving them!
Dr.
Waylon B. Moore calls these difficult people that God places or
allows in our lives, “Spiritual Sandpaper”. God will use them to
work on us to make us more like His Son Jesus Christ!
Application
I
will continue to pray for this person, and I will continue asking God
to show us how to express our love towards this person.
How
about you? Do you have any Spiritual Sandpaper People in your life?
Prayer
Heavenly
Father, You have shown us how to love unconditionally. Help me to do
just that. Show me how to love difficult people. Don't let me give up
on them. Give me the capacity to love them even when they act like
they don't care for me and when they act like I am a bother to them.
Don't let me ever give up.
I
pray for any person reading this blog today who feels unloved. Wrap
Your arms around them today. May they sense Your love. Encourage them
today, Lord. Bring people into their life who will love them
unconditionally!
Daily
Bible Reading: 2 Samuel 1; Psalm 140; Matthew 13; I added: John 15
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