Tag: Love

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Unexpectedly

Daily Thought

Luke 12-13

Daily Thought

My dad popped into my room every so often just to see how I was doing, and, I suspect, to see what I was doing. I did not have a lock on my bedroom door, by design of my parents. It was my bedroom, but it was Mom and Dad’s house. No locking them out. Sometimes he knocked, more often he did not. My bedroom door would suddenly swing open and Dad would enter, which meant the door could suddenly unexpectedly swing open anytime. Some of my friends hid stuff and did stuff in their rooms, stuff they did not want their parents to see. Not me.

“You also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” ~Luke 12:40

After his resurrection, Jesus met with his disciples and told them to go everywhere and share the Good News of God’s love with everyone. Then he disappeared into the heavens and the disciples were left staring. “And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, and said, ‘Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven’” (Acts 1:10-11). Suddenly. Unexpectedly. Be ready.

This is not to be a message of fear, however, but wonderful anticipation. “Blessed are those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes. Truly, I say to you, he will dress himself for service and have them recline at table, and he will come and serve them” (Luke 12:37). Jesus is more anxious to return than we are to see him. He cannot wait to set the table and serve a feast. Fear may be an effective deterrent against doing what is bad, but it does not make one good. Love does. “Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom. Sell your possessions, and give to the needy” (Luke 12:32-33). 

We love because he first loved us. ~1John 4:19

Daily Prayer

Heavenly Father, we live in a world You created for us, a world that is good. I am so sorry for the bad I bring into it, and I am looking forward to the day Jesus comes and makes everything good again. I am amazed at Your love for me in spite of the way I mess things up. I am not just sorry, though. I will turn around and be a part of bringing good back into this world. Because You love me this much, how can I not do otherwise!

I pray, God, that the good things people see will turn their eyes toward You. May I live every moment eager for Your coming and hunger for Your blessings as much You love to bless me.  

Amen

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Oil and Whine

Daily Reading

Mark 14

Daily Thought

When a woman poured a flask of very expensive ointment on the head of Jesus, he accepted her offering as fitting and good, “She has done a beautiful thing to me” (Mark 14:6), but some in the room objected, “Why was the ointment wasted like that? For this ointment could have been sold for more than three hundred denarii and given to the poor” (Mark 14:4-5). In criticizing the woman, they actually demeaned Jesus. The oil, they said, could have been put to better use. The woman thought it best used for Jesus, no matter the cost. Besides, you cannot waste love.

One of those in the room, Judas Iscariot, however, put a price on Jesus, and “went to the chief priests in order to betray him to them. They were glad and promised to give him money. And he sought an opportunity to betray him” (Mark 14:10-11). To Judas, Jesus was a commodity, worth 30 pieces of silver. He came to Jesus for what he could get out of Jesus. But the woman adored Jesus–to her, Jesus was her Savior and Lord, the Christ, the Son of the Living God. She looked to gain nothing, but to give her all. If the woman had any regrets about emptying her jar of perfume on Jesus, it would be that she did not have more.

Daily Prayer

My God and Savior, what is amazing is that You gave Your all for me before I cared. You poured out Your blood for my sake, an act of love I can barely fathom. I am learning more about You, knowing You better each day, following more faithfully, loving You more fully. It is a lifetime of growth, but there is no better life to live.

My desire, Jesus, is to empty myself for You, as You did for me; to give up my desires and replace them with Yours; to lose myself in Your love for others; and to worship You by giving myself to You completely.

Amen

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The Wrath of God

Daily Reading

Nahum 1-3

Daily Thought

Nineveh was the capital of Assyria, a brutish people who crushed Israel. The city once repented briefly when warned by Jonah of God’s coming wrath, but returned again to evil and worse, “Woe to the bloody city, all full of lies and plunder–no end to the prey!” (Nahum 3:1). This time, there would be no prophetical warning, but a pronouncement of doom, and no nation would shed a tear over Nineveh’s demise, rather, “all who hear the news about you clap their hands over you” (Nahum 3:19). Imagine a funeral where everyone is happy you are gone.

Their doom is set–“the Lord is a jealous and avenging God; the Lord is avenging and wrathful; the Lord takes vengeance on his adversaries and keeps wrath for his enemies” (Nahum 1:2). Such words seem ungodly to our ears, wrath and vengeance and jealousy, possibly because we like our soft-focused, air-brushed pictures of Jesus, or because we think God a watchmaker who merely wound up creation and turned her loose to run her course, but the true God is intimate and personal. His jealousy is not the emotion we exhibit, enviously desiring the possessions of others, but the jealousy of God is the loving desire to protect the people who belong to him, wrathfully when necessary, for where is the love if there is no anger kindled toward an enemy who brings harm. And where is justice if injustice is not avenged, and who better to trust vengeance to than the holy righteous God. 

Toward Nineveh is written, “Behold, I am against you, declares the Lord of hosts” (Nahum 3:5). This was welcome news to Judah in the face of her enemy. “The LORD is good, a refuge in times of trouble. He cares for those who trust in him” (Nahum 1:7). This is the God of heaven and earth, who is an intimate father and passionately protective of his people against evil.

Daily Prayer

Lord God, Maker of the heavens and the earth, God outside of time and space, Creator of time and space, Author of life, the beginning and the end, Eternal Father, Savior and Lord, Yahweh, I Am That I Am.

Thank You for loving me.

Amen

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The Image of God

Daily Reading

Obadiah 1; Jonah 1-4

Daily Thought

Of Ninevah had been written, “Woe to the bloody city, all full of lies and plunder–dead bodies without end–who betrays nations with her whorings, and peoples with her charms” (Nahum 3:1, 3-4). Ninevah was an evil nation, hated by Israel, and God called the prophet Jonah to “arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it, for their evil has come up before me” (Jonah 1:2). Ninevah was 500 miles east. Jonah immediately boarded a ship for Tarshish, two thousand miles west, the opposite direction. Jonah hated evil Ninevah, so he also hated a good God who is “slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster” (Jonah 4:2). Jonah disobeyed God and set sail to remove God’s mercy as far from Ninevah as possible.

It did not work, of course. God sent a storm to get Jonah tossed from the ship, “so they picked up Jonah and hurled him into the sea, and the sea ceased from its raging” (Jonah 1:15); and God sent a great fish to swallow him up and deliver him back to Israel, “and the Lord spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah out upon the dry land” (Jonah 2:10). “Let’s start over,” God said. “Then the word of the Lord came to Jonah the second time, saying, ‘Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it the message that I tell you’” (Jonah 3:1-2). Jonah obeyed this time, “and the people of Nineveh believed God. They called for a fast and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the least of them” (Jonah 3:5), and God relented, just as Jonah had predicted, “when God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil way, God relented of the disaster that he had said he would do to them, and he did not do it. But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was angry” (Jonah 3:10-4:1). Jonah would prefer a god made in his own image, a god who would hate the same people he hated. But that is not God.

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 5:43-45). It turns out, the way you can tell God has made you in his image is how much you love the same people he loves.

Daily Prayer

Savior God, You are full of mercy and grace. My love for You is displayed as I love people. In fact, You said it will be apparent that I am Your disciple by my love for others. God, help me improve at love. Teach me Your ways. May I be a servant like Your Son.

Thank You for Your salvation. It has changed my heart. If You can show that kind of love for me, can I not love others the same?

Amen

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True Love

Daily Reading

Jeremiah 18-22

Daily Thought

God makes as a condition of Judah’s judgment their goodness to others, that they will treat well those who are lost, harmed, poor, and abused. “Thus says the Lord: ‘Do justice and righteousness, and deliver from the hand of the oppressor him who has been robbed. And do no wrong or violence to the resident alien, the fatherless, and the widow, nor shed innocent blood in this place’” (Jeremiah 22:3). Yet later, when asked why they are being judged, the answer is, “Because they have forsaken the covenant of the Lord their God and worshiped other gods and served them” (Jeremiah 22:9). So, which is it that brings judgment against Judah, their indifference toward others or their idolatry against God?

Jesus was asked which commandment is greatest. He said, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment.” But he wasn’t finished, “And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:37-39). Two commandments, together the greatest, essential to each other, neither stands alone. Indifference is idolatry; compassion is worship.

“The righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’” ~Matthew 25:37-40

Our love for God is only as true as it is displayed in our love for others, and our love for others is only as true as our devotion to God and his ways. 

Daily Prayer

Wonderful God, I am learning to love You better by learning to love others more. You are teaching me humility and service by doing it Yourself first. I would not know You unless You had sacrificed Yourself for me; You loved me that much. May I love that much.

I cannot worship my Creator without caring for those You created, those who bear Your very image. May I love actively, seeking opportunities to serve and to share. May others find You in my actions toward them, recognizing Your grace and goodness in all I do.

Amen

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For God So Loved the World

Daily Reading

Psalm 108-114

Daily Thought

In Psalm 108, David sings of the love of God, “For your steadfast love is great above the heavens; your faithfulness reaches to the clouds” (Psalm 108:4). God’s love is so great, sings David, the world can hardly contain it. 

I love ice cream. It gives me pleasure. I love things that give me pleasure. I should admit, then, that I do not love spumoni ice cream. You see, my love is conditional. I love ice cream, but only the kind I like. That is one kind of love, my kind of love. There is another kind. “God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). God hates evil, and we are covered in it. We reject and rebel against our own Creator, the Lord of the heavens and the earth, the one true God, and still he loves us. He loves us completely, to the death. What is amazing is not that the love of God reaches to the heavens, but that it touches earth; “and the Word became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:14). With all due respect to David, that is how I would write the song.

“For God so loved the world…” ~John 3:16.

Daily Prayer

Amazing God, You deserve the worship of all creation. Yet, so often, I forget about You. Many choose to ignore you. Some even hate You. And still, You love us, die for us, and offer us salvation. We reject Paradise and You invite us back. Truly, You are love.

I am able to love, God, because You first loved me. I pray that my love for the world always and fully reflects Your love for the world.

Amen

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God’s Smile

Daily Reading

Psalm 80-85

Daily Thought

God made the nation of Israel out of a promise to Abraham, raising her and caring for her, delivering her from Egypt and planting her in a land of her own. “I will walk among you and will be your God, and you shall be my people. I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, that you should not be their slaves” (Leviticus 26:12-13). Israel was the family of God, and in all families, there are rules, “But if you will not listen to me and will not do all these commandments…” (Leviticus 26:14). Israel had broken a lot of rules, important rules like, “You shall have no other gods before me” (Exodus 20:3), and now they were in trouble.

“No throwing a ball in the house,” was one of our rules. My son threw a ball. It broke a vase, so he hid the pieces, but he was 5 years old and 5-year olds do not hide well. “Go to your room,” I growled, holding the pieces in my hand.

I waited. Five minutes feels like five hours when you are five. Opening his door, I walked in with my mad face. He was sitting on the top bunk, frightened, but not of being punished. His damp eyes met mine with one question: “Are we still okay, Dad? You and me?” We were and I smiled and then he wasn’t scared anymore. He knew he was still in trouble, but trouble is okay as long as he knows Dad and Son are still okay.

Restore us, O Lord God of hosts!
Let your face shine, that we may be saved! ~Psalm 80:3, 7, 19

Daily Prayer

My God, though I turn away and do my own thing, and break rules, and wander off the path, Your grace is still before me. When I turn back to You and see Your love and say, “I’m sorry and I’ll stop,” You forgive me. Even when I do it again. And again.

God, I don’t want to take You for granted, and I’m sorry when I do. I do what I don’t want to do a lot, but less often as I grow in my trust and faith in Your goodness. I’m amazed that You still smile down on me, and forever I thank and praise You. You are my refuge, my strength, and my salvation.

Amen

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Upside-Down

Daily Reading

Deuteronomy 14-16

Daily Thought

Deuteronomy 15:4 says, “But there will be no poor among you.” Seven verses later, “For there will never cease to be poor in the land” (verse 11). Which is it?

It’s the latter. Verse 11 is an admission of reality. Jesus repeats it years later, “For the poor you always have with you” (John 12:8), and it is still reality today. Verse 4 is conditional. It is not true, but it would be true if the second half of the sentence was true. I left off the second half: “if only you will strictly obey the voice of the Lord your God, being careful to do all this commandment that I command you today.”

God would turn our world upside-down (which means the right side would be up) if we would obey him, but we don’t. We don’t even understand what he is asking of us, because we don’t understand the heart of God. For example, the eighth commandment, “You shall not steal” (Deuteronomy 5:19). We think stealing happens when someone who does not have sees someone who has and takes it from him. God says stealing is more than that. Stealing happens when someone who has sees someone who does not have and does not share with him. Read that again. 

“If among you, one of your brothers should become poor, in any of your towns within your land that the Lord your God is giving you, you shall not harden your heart or shut your hand against your poor brother, but you shall open your hand to him and lend him sufficient for his need, whatever it may be” (Deuteronomy 15:7-8)

Does God have rules? You bet he does, and he expects us to keep them. If you love me, you will keep my commandments (John 14:15). But following God is not about following rules. It is about love, “love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:39). And it is about life, “I came that they may have life and have it abundantly” (John 10:10).  If we truly desire what life has to offer, if we truly desire to love others, if we truly desire that there will be no poor among us, there is a way. Desire God and do what God says.

Daily Prayer

Lord God, You have come to bring Your justice into the land, to give Your grace to the repentant, to bless the meek and the poor, to comfort those who mourn, to bring righteousness and goodness to those who seek Your face. May Your Kingdom come and Your will be done.

Father, I pray that my heart would be free of darkness, full of light. That I would see others, love others, and serve others the way You do. God, that I would look at others as more important than myself, that I would be sensitive to needs, that I would have open hands, and feet ready to go wherever You lead. That people would praise Your name because of the faithfulness of Your followers.

Amen

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The Act of Love

Daily Reading

Deuteronomy 5-7

Daily Thought

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might” (Deuteronomy 6:5). If we love because we are commanded to love, is it truly love? Isn’t love “a many-splendored thing,” a rapturous mystery that springs from my heart, over which I have little if any control?  

Not according to God’s Word, and not according to life either. Attraction springs up and disappears at its own whim, but not love. True love begins with a decision, I choose to love you. I choose to love you no matter how I feel or how you make me feel. I love you the way I have learned to love, the way God has loved me. No matter what, even at my worst, God sacrificed his best for me–”God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). God wills his best toward me, and I in turn will my best toward others. I love them as I love myself.

More than feeling and beyond choice, love is action, and often an act of sacrifice. “God so loved … that he gave” (John 3:16). Count the emotions in 1Corinthians 13:4-8, “Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends.” I count one, maybe–irritable could be an emotion, and even that is what love is not, not what it is.

What love is is displayed by God toward me in his Son, Jesus Christ; and by me, in turn, toward God, presenting all of me, my heart, my soul, my might, to him. When I love God in this way, I will love those he loves, as well–my neighbors.

Daily Prayer

Heavenly Father, I am amazed at Your love. Your Son sacrificed for my sake. Your Son considering me and everyone else on this planet above Himself. He released His hold on Your presence, and emptied Himself of glory, and died. Shamefully died for my shame.

Thank You. You saved me, showed me what love looks like, and gave me the capacity to love others. If You had not first loved me, I would not even know what love looks like, because I was consumed with me first. But now, I too am learning to consider others before and above me. To love them as I love myself. What an amazing love.

Amen

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Sodom and Springer

Daily Reading

Genesis 19-21

Daily Thought

Genesis 19–what a chapter! The cities of Sodom and Gomorrah are a carnival of perversity, but their time is up. The depraved men of Sodom clamor for sex with two men/angels staying in Lot’s home. Lot offers to them his daughters instead. Are you kidding me! Their sin has eclipsed the threshold of God’s patience. God’s mercy is drained as he destroys the cities, yet God’s grace endures and Lot and his family are rescued before the downpour of fire and brimstone. Still, as the cities smolder in the distance, Lot’s unrepentant daughters get their dad drunk and take turns sleeping with him. Both end up pregnant.

It’s “The Jerry Springer Show,” the original trash TV. Jerry was asked if it was difficult to find his outlandish guests. “Are you kidding?” he laughed. “They are in every neighborhood in America. Yours too.” He’s right, of course. Millions of people watched Jerry’s show. If you watch the show, you are like the show. Look at our entertainment, our websites, our video games, our politics, or look at the daily news headlines. Nothing stays in Vegas. Lot’s wife looked back with a longing desire. She loved the lifestyle, and we do, too. What’s wrong with the world? In the words of G.K. Chesterton, “I am.” We all are.

And still God’s grace endures. Jesus took our sins, like those of Sodom and Springer, and mine, and made them his own. He was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities (Isaiah 53:5). He took what I deserve. That’s mercy. Then he gives me his righteousness. That’s grace. He became like me so that I can become like him. That’s love.   

Daily Prayer

My Lord and Savior God, Your love is overwhelming. You love me and I am not worthy of it. You love me anyway. Thank you for that, and thank you, as well, for hating sin. I need to hate sin more. What it does to me, what it has done to Your creation. I look forward to Your coming Kingdom, when sin is removed, when holiness is the way of the world, when Jesus reigns. Turn my longings toward You, my desires toward Your ways.

Amen