Love Is Enough

Scriptures: 2 Corinthians 5:17, Romans 12:2

LOOKING BACK SO WE CAN WALK FORWARD!

Rearview and side mirrors on a vehicle serve a purpose. Drivers check them often to avoid danger. However, if they constantly look in these mirrors and have no focus on what lies ahead, there would surely be a catastrophe! So it is with life! Let us look through the windshield of life with a positive mindset as we analyze what is behind us. 

“Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.” Romans 12:2 

Please answer these questions about yourself and be honest. Honesty is the key that will help us determine what is working and what is not! 

(I suggest you jot your responses in a notebook to refer to in the weeks to come) 

• Think about the worst thing that happened to you in 2021.
• Was it beyond your control? 
• Was it a loss in a relationship or a job? 
• Do you have an anger issue? 
• Do you have a ‘know-it-all’ personality? 
• Do you go on defense easily? 
• Is it hard for you to accept constructive criticism? 
• Regardless of what a person says, do you feel your opinion matters more, so much so that you express it? 
• Do you always need to talk while others are trying to watch a program? 
• If you have a health issue, have you allowed your health to dictate who you are? 

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!”2 Corinthians 5:17 

These are just a few questions to get you thinking. Take a deep inner look at ways you can make slight changes as you look forward to a new beginning. If we are always waiting for others to change, rather than changing our own weak areas, it will be hard to begin anew! Take a few moments and chat with the Lord about the list.

Scriptures: 1 Peter 4:8, 1 Corinthians 13:13

LASTING LOVE

“Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins.” 1 Peter 4:8 

The scripture above is full of truth and power. It is solidified by the Love Chapter found in 1 Corinthians 13. I suggest we all read and re-read that entire chapter. Today, society gives a very different vision of love that does not line up with God’s standards. 

When we are full of self and always wanting our desires, it is hard to have the kind of love designed by God. Have you heard the saying, ‘You are enough?’ It has great meaning because it was meant to encourage people who have experienced verbal or physical abuse. 

God wants you to know that Love is enough! If we are a person whose love practices forgiveness and putting others before ourselves, we are on the right path of experiencing a ‘lasting love!’ 

God’s love is the perfect example of a ‘lasting love.’ In the love chapter, we are told that love hardly notices when another does wrong. That is because we are focusing on the person and their positive traits. It is so easy for a person’s wrongdoings to distract us from who God made them be. 

Today’s practice is to jot down: 

• What was the best thing that happened to you in 2021? 
• List your positive attributes! 
• Even if a person wants to constantly interrupt your schedule, take time to listen, regardless of how badly you want to get back to what you were doing! 

Today take this next few moments and chat with the Lord. Chat about what you see in your life that could use improvement and thank Him for the things that have become part of your strength.

Scriptures: Matthew 9:9-13, Romans 3:23

TOUGH SKIN

Did you ever hear anyone say, ‘that person has tough skin?’ Having tough skin means the person lacks sensitivity and is not easily offended. Many times, a career becomes part of the reason for a person to become tough-skinned. My late husband was in the tax assessment business for several years, and it is true; no one likes the tax assessor.

“As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at his tax collector’s booth. “Follow me and be my disciple,” Jesus said to him. So Matthew got up and followed him. Later, Matthew invited Jesus and his disciples to his home as dinner guests, along with many tax collectors and other disreputable sinners. But when the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with such scum? When Jesus heard this, he said, “Healthy people don’t need a doctor—sick people do.” Then he added, “Now go and learn the meaning of this Scripture: ‘I want you to show mercy, not offer sacrifices.’ For I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners.” Matthew 9:9-13

My husband’s job wasn’t to collect taxes. It entailed assessing properties to establish its annual real estate tax. The Apostle Matthew (Levi) in the Bible had a career that was not popular. When Jesus called Matthew to follow him, he was a tax collector (or “publican”); one of the most reviled professions in ancient Judaism. When a career involves the pocket of mankind, all kinds of accusations are made.

If left go, the tough skin heart could become hardened.

In today’s exercise, has anything or anyone toughened your skin? Jot down things or situations or people that may have made your skin a little thicker.

“Yes, Jesus classified the tax collectors as sinners, but in other scripture, He classified all as sinners!” Read Romans 3:23

As you think about this, ask yourself if part of your heart has hardened?

Today in your chat with the Lord, talk to him about these situations. If this hasn’t happened to you, then go to God with a thankful heart and ask Him how you can continue to carry the light to those in your circle.

Scripture: Matthew 5:43-48

LEARNING TO LOVE THOSE WHO ARE UNLOVELY

I find it ironic that in today’s scripture, Jesus used the tax collector as an example to get his point across. Because people reviled the Matthews of their day, God knew it would get their attention!

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” Matthew 5:43-48

In today’s practice, ask yourself the hard questions that Jesus asked in today’s verse, and jot down your honest responses.

Further thought:

• Does seeing a disheveled person bring judgment across your mind?
• Does the coworker or relative that gets under your skin cause you to gossip about them?
• If your boss gave the promotion you deserved to another person, are you holding a grudge against the boss and the person who got the promotion?

These were just a few thoughts to promote your thinking. Jot down the names of people you have a hard time loving and think of ways to correct how and why you feel the way you do.

Chat with the Lord and ask Him to open opportunities to see the unlovely through His eyes.

Scriptures: Matthew 21:42, Acts 4:11, Mark 12:10, Luke 4:24

REJECTION MAKES IT HARD TO SHOW LOVE

Have you ever experienced rejection? Maybe just once or twice won’t have that great an effect on you, however, if you have experienced a lifetime of rejection, it does have a way of hardening the heart that makes it difficult to trust and open your heart to love. 

Children who have been abused sexually or verbally for years tend to have difficulty in adult relationships. It is hard to open your heart to love and become vulnerable when you are used to disappointment and hurt. 

“Then Jesus asked them, “Didn’t you ever read this in the Scriptures? ‘The stone that the builders rejected has now become the cornerstone. This is the Lord’s doing, and it is wonderful to see.” Matthew 21:42 

“For Jesus is the one referred to in the Scriptures, where it says, ‘The stone that you builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.” Acts 4:11 and Mark 12:10

Jesus, the Cornerstone, experienced a lot of rejection and still does to this very day. He was bullied, chased after, tortured, denied, mocked, disfigured, nailed to a cross, pierced in the side, and died because of rejection. 

He set the standard for us, the perfect example. He didn’t hold that against us but willingly went to the cross for the very ones who persecuted Him. He loved his enemies and the unlovely and those who treated Him wrongly. It is he who binds up the brokenhearted. 

If you have been rejected, don’t allow the enemy of your soul to drag you down further, but allow your faith to arise and follow the standard of Jesus! 

In today’s exercise, sit and chat with the Lord. He knows your hurts, so why not unload on Him and ask Him to heal your hurts and deep wounds. Ask Him to gently lead you to forgive those who have hurt you. Ask Him to reopen your heart so that it can pour out love on others. The more you open up honestly to the Lord, the more you will find your heart becoming soft and tender.

Scripture: 1 John 4:7-9

LOVE IS THE GAME-CHANGER

Let’s face it; the world is in a mess. From the worldwide pandemic, politics, rumors of war, high cost of living, loss of jobs, and crime rates soaring, there comes a time when those who know Christ need to stop the vicious whirlwind that is sweeping from country to country.

What is the answer? Jesus! But Jesus gave us a cure that isn’t in a vaccine, it isn’t in a leader, and it isn’t in your career.

The answer comes straight from the heart of man:

“Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.” 1 John 4:7-9

Did you get that? You and I can live through Him! Who is the perfect love that casts out fear? The Lord.

You and I can be the difference in our immediate circles to put down our defenses and open our arms to welcome in the very One who has our answers.

As we end this devotional, let us sit awhile with the Lord and just chat. Start praying individually for those in your family, your friends, and coworkers. Pray good things for those who have not been kind to you. We can change the world, a person at a time, by beginning anew from within our changed hearts!