Love Them Anyway!

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βI am lovedβ

My Thoughts πΒ
Last night during the evening service at our church, Nik our Minister read the following and asked us to discuss which one from the bullet list really stood out to us, and why?:
βI am lovedβ
‘but what does this mean to you?‘
β’ The whole of me my body, mind heart and soul, that is my strength, my thoughts my deepest longings and all my emotions are loved by God.
β’ God knows me AND loves me (not God knows me but loves me)
β’ I am loved for who I am. Completely, Utterly, For Ever.
β’ Others may dislike me, but God loves me
β’ I may hate myself, but God continues to love me
β’ He loves me for what I am and what I will be.
β’ He loves me because he understands me.
it was really interesting hearing the different answers from the diverse brothers and sisters in our congragation.
So I wondered if you could comment with your answers/thoughts to the same question above?
β Music “One Thing Remains” by Passion
Be encouraged, and never forget that you are always loved! π
Because Of God’s Grace

$5 Bill

A few years ago I had managed to screw up my life so badly that I found myself without a home and without hope. I’m ashamed to admit it, but even then I was so absorbed by my own self-pity that all I could think of was begging enough money to buy the cheapest drink I could find. One day I was sitting in front of a store panhandling when a woman walked by with a small boy in tow. She ignored my pitch and hurried away. As I watched them go down the sidewalk the small boy broke free and came running back. He stood in front of me, fumbling in his coat pocket; he pulled out a five-dollar bill that was almost certainly more money than he had ever held before, and handed it to me. I was completely dumbstruck and just sat there staring at him with the money in my hand. By then his mother had returned and with tears in her eyes gently led the boy away. He turned back once to wave and they were gone. I don’t know how long I sat there, but I have not had another drink since then.
Unknown
Don’t You Know, Havn’t You Heard?

Isaiah 40:21-31Β (VOICE)
Donβt you know, havenβt you heard or even been toldΒ from your earliest memories how the earth came to be?Β Who else could have done it except God, enthroned high above the earth?Β From such a vantage people seem like grasshoppers to Him.Β Who else but God could stretch out the skies as if they were a curtain,Β draw them tight, suspend them over our heads like the roof of a tent?Β
God reduces the rulers and judges,Β the rich and powerful of the earth, to nothing;Β They scarcely are planted, take root and start growing,Β before God blows a withering breath,Β And storm winds carry them away like chaff.Β The Holy One asks, βDo you really think you can findΒ someone or something to compare to Me? My equal?βΒ Look at the myriad of stars and constellations above you.Β Who set them to burning, each in its place?Β Who knows those countless lights each by name?Β They obediently shine, each in its place,Β because God has the great strength and strong power to make it so.
Why, then, do you, Jacob, inheritors of Godβs promise,Β you, Israel, chosen of GodβWhy do you say, βMy troubled path is hidden from the Eternal;Β God has lost all interest in My causeβ?Β Donβt you know? Havenβt you heard?Β The Eternal, the Everlasting God,Β The Creator of the whole world, never gets tired or weary.Β His wisdom is beyond understanding.Β God strengthens the wearyΒ and gives vitality to those worn down by age and care.Β Young people will get tired;Β strapping young men will stumble and fall.
But those who trust in the Eternal One will regain their strength.Β They will soar on wings as eagles.Β They will runβnever winded, never weary.
They will walkβnever tired, never faint.
Be Swift To Love

Life’s short and we never have enough time for the hearts of those who travel the way with us. O, be swift to love! Make haste to be kind.
Henri-Frederic Amiel
Anger

There is nothing that can be done with anger that cannot be done better without it.
Dallas Willard
When Temptation Comes

Loving Father, please help me to say the right words of love and affection to those whom I love so that when temptation comes, or when others try to draw them away from me, they will not doubt my love for them. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.
Great Tranquility Of Heart

He has great tranquility of heart who cares neither for the praises nor the fault-finding of men. He will easily be content and pacified, whose conscience is pure. You are not holier if you are praised, nor the more worthless if you are found fault with.
Thomas Kempis
Just Wait In His Presence

The whole duty and blessedness of waiting on God has its root in this, that He is such a blessed Being, full, to overflowing, of goodness and power and life and joy, that we, however wretched, cannot for any time come into contact with Him, without that life and power secretly, silently, beginning to enter into us and blessing us. God is Love! God’s love is just His delight to impart Himself and His blessedness to His children. Come, and however feeble you feel, just wait in His presence. As a feeble invalid is brought out into the sunshine to let its warmth go through him, come with all that is dark and cold in you into the sunshine of God’s holy, omnipotent love, and sit and wait there, with the one thought: Here I am, in the sunshine of His love. As the sun does its work in the weak one who seeks its rays, God will do His work in you.
Andrew Murray
Are You Thanks-Living?

Thanksgiving is good, but thanks-living is better!
Matthew Henry
Inherit A Blessing Today

1 Peter 3:8-9Β (VOICE)
Finally, all of you, be like-minded and show sympathy, love, compassion, and humility to and for each other, not paying back evil with evil or insult with insult, but repaying the bad with a blessing. It was this you were called to do, so that you might inherit a blessing.
Love People!

Love people and use things. Donβt love things and use people.
For Those Who Love Him

Romans 8:28Β (NIVUK)
And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
Show Me…

Lord, I want to show the kindness of YourΒ heart today. Please show me who I can helpΒ and in what way. I want my words and deedsΒ to convey Your love. Amen.
Unfailing love

Psalm 89:1-2Β (VOICE)
I will sing of Your unfailing love, Eternal One, forever.
I will speak of Your faithfulness to all generations.
I will tell how Your unfailing love will always stand strong;
and how Your faithfulness is established in the heavens above.
God Wants To Use You

There are times when God wants to use you in someone else’s life; it may not be pretty or comfortable, but they need to see Jesus!
In Perfect Sync With Godβs Spirit

Galatians 5:13-26Β (VOICE)
Brothers and sisters, God has called you to freedom! Hear the call, and do not spoil this gift by using your liberty to engage in what your flesh desires; instead, use it to serve each other as Jesus taught through love. For the whole law comes down to this one instruction: βLove your neighbor as yourself,β so why all this vicious gnawing on each other? If you are not careful, you will find youβve eaten each other alive!
Hereβs my instruction: walk in the Spirit, and let the Spirit bring order to your life. If you do, you will never give in to your selfish and sinful cravings. For everything the flesh desires goes against the Spirit, and everything the Spirit desires goes against the flesh. There is a constant battle raging between them that prevents you from doing the good you want to do. But when you are led by the Spirit, you are no longer subject to the law.
Itβs clear that our flesh entices us into practicing some of its most heinous acts: participating in corrupt sexual relationships, impurity, unbridled lust, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, arguing, jealousy, anger, selfishness, contentiousness, division, envy of othersβ good fortune, drunkenness, drunken revelry, and other shameful vices that plague humankind. I told you this clearly before, and I only tell you again so there is no room for confusion: those who give in to these ways will not inherit the kingdom of God.
Paul has been preaching about the call of God to freedom, and so he now spells it out: we are done with the demands of the law; now we are free to live in the Spirit and to be truly right with God. As free people, the Spirit gives us the characteristics of Jesus; we, too, can freely love in joy and peace. We can have patience along with kindness and faithfulness that can only come from the Father. We can reflect the goodness of God while being gentle in operating with self-control. For those who follow Him and live in the Spirit, these characteristics or fruits are a gift from God. As we grow in the faith, we find that we belong to God and can walk daily in the Spirit.
The Holy Spirit produces a different kind of fruit: unconditional love, joy, peace, patience, kindheartedness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. You wonβt find any law opposed to fruit like this. Those of us who belong to the Anointed One have crucified our old lives and put to death the flesh and all the lusts and desires that plague us.
Now since we have chosen to walk with the Spirit, letβs keep each step in perfect sync with Godβs Spirit. This will happen when we set aside our self-interests and work together to create true community instead of a culture consumed by provocation, pride, and envy.
Ask God For It!

James 1:2-11Β (VOICE)
Donβt run from tests and hardships, brothers and sisters. As difficult as they are, you will ultimately find joy in them; if you embrace them, your faith will blossom under pressure and teach you true patience as you endure. And true patience brought on by endurance will equip you to complete the long journey and cross the finish lineβmature, complete, and wanting nothing. If you donβt have all the wisdom needed for this journey, then all you have to do is ask God for it; and God will grant all that you need. He gives lavishly and never scolds you for asking.
Wisdom, as James understands it, is the ability to live life well and make good decisions. Wisdom doesnβt come from old age or hard knocks. Wisdom begins with knowing and depending absolutely on God, who is never stingy when it comes to wisdom for those who seek it. He supplies all the wisdom we need when we ask. But when we try to go it aloneβwithout Godβtrouble is around the corner.
The key is that your request be anchored by your single-minded commitment to God. Those who depend only on their own judgment are like those lost on the seas, carried away by any wave or picked up by any wind. Those adrift on their own wisdom shouldnβt assume the Lord will rescue them or bring them anything. The splinter of divided loyalty shatters your compass and leaves you dizzy and confused.
God’s Love Is Greater Than Our Doubts

1 John 3:2-3Β (VOICE)
My loved ones, we have been adopted into Godβs family; and we are officially His children now. The full picture of our destiny is not yet clear, but we know this much: when Jesus appears, we will be like Him because we will see Him just as He is. All those who focus their hopes on Him and His coming seek to purify themselves just as He is pure.
When we feel like we are not good enough to be loved by God, we should remember that Godβs love is greater than our doubts. We must silence the sounds of condemnation so we can hear the voice of Godβs loving assurance and remember that He has selected us to be part of His family.
Daily Prompt: A Friend In Need
Finish this sentence: βMy closest friend isβ¦βΒ
My lovely wife Sarah!!!
Daily Post ~ Photographers, artists, poets: show us FRIENDSHIP.Β

β§Β Me & Sarah at Friday Street, Surrey, UK β§
Spiritual Fullness In Christ

Colossians 2:6-7Β (NIVUK)
So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.
Flesh V’s Spirit: Which One Is Winning In Your Life?

Galatians 5:13-26Β (NIV)
Life by the Spirit
You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: βLove your neighbor as yourself.β If you bite and devour each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.
So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.
Helpless & Weak
Sometimes I feel so helpless and weak. I think that is why God uses me’. β Mother Teresa
Are Your Fruits Growing?

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. – Galatians 5:22-25
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Become The Right Person!
The first command in Ephesians 5 tells us to be imitators of God by reflecting the way he loves us. Our love for others flows out of our sense of being deeply loved. Instead of constantly looking for the right person, God tells us to become the right person. Instead of looking for love, God tells us to realise that love has already found us! God loves as no one else ever can.
Chip Ingram
Choose Joy Today

Image via BibleLockScreens
There’s No Ceiling To Hope

This is a post for all of my sisters & brothers out there who are struggling at the moment. I just wanted to try and inspire you with some of the Songs/Poems i’ve posted on here. Some will have already read them, but its really on my heart to try and help you as you fight with your day to day struggles. Peace be with you.
page links for my Songs/Poems:Β
- Captivity Of Negativity
- Depression
- Not Afraid To Die
- Rest In Piece
- Shadow of the Beast
- The Prodigal Son
I Hope these songs/poems will reach out to people who can relate to some of the feelings i went through on my Journey! But i want you to know that you are never alone and a new Life of Love, Joy & inner Peace are waiting for you. Check out my βAboutβ page to read a little more about my journey.
A World We Didn’t Make
The Hebrew evening/morning sequence conditions us to the rhythms of grace. We go to sleep, and God begins his work…We wake into a world we didn’t make, into a salvation we didn’t earn.
Eugene Peterson
Praise God

My Thoughts πΒ
Last night at our evening meeting, Ruth (one of our ministers) led us in an hour of praise and prayer to God. Ruth started with the prayer below and Sarah and I played 8 songs, and in-between the songs Ruth would say a prayer or a reflection which flowed beautifully for the whole hour.
It was deeply moving and I wanted to just share with you this opening prayer.
π Prayer 4 2day!Β
Praise God for: mountains and oceans, planets and stars
Praise God for big things
Praise God for: seeds and spiders, petals and drops of dew
Praise God for small things
Praise God for: rolling thunder and the crashing waves
Praise God for loud things
Praise God for: a breath of wind and a whispered prayer
Praise God for quiet things
Praise God for: soaring eagles and hairy gorillas
Praise God for strong things
Praise God for: snowflakes and cobwebs – a tiny baby
Praise God for fragile things
Praise God for: the flash of lightening and a humming bird’s wings
Praise God for fast things
Praise God for: the growth of a tree and the erosion of cliffs
Praise God for slow things
Praise God for: the moon, the sun, other worlds
Praise God for far away things
Praise God for: the person sitting next to me, my own heartbeat
Praise God for close-by things
Thank you that though you are so big,
you become small enough to meet us here on earth
though you are so strong, you show your love in gentleness
though you are loud as thunder, you speak to us in the sound of silence.
Thank you that though you could be faster than the speed of light
You choose to walk at our pace and to hold our hand.
Amen
Let Love Be Without Hypocrisy

Let love be without hypocrisy, Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good. Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another; not lagging in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer; distributing to the needs of the saints, given to hospitality.
Romans 12:9-13
Weekly Photo Challenge: Companionable

βΒ Me & my lovely wife Sarah β

βΒ Me, Sarah & Bruce strolling along Heacham beachΒ β

βΒ Me & BruceΒ β
If you’ve already read my ‘About‘ page, you’ll know why I’ve chosen these photos! π

October 15, 2013 








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