30 Days of Love - Day 21: Love Never Fails

Day 21: Love Never Fails

(Click here for Day 20)

“Love never fails.” 1 Corinthians 13:8

If someone invented a car that never breaks down, you’d want one. If someone figured out how to get a toaster to toast your bread evenly every single time, you’d be all over it. If a mother in Idaho decided that she was done with the never-ending cycle of clean and dirty laundry, and found a way to get the clothes to wash, dry, and fold themselves, you’d be willing to part with a good chunk of change to get it for yourself. (There's apparently a machine that folds them now—gasp!)

All of that stuff, while possible, seems like so many pipe dreams. But there is one powerful tool we Christians have available to us that doesn’t wear out or need replacement—the love of God. The Bible says that it never fails.  If you do things God’s way, it will never, ever fail. Never!

Are you excited yet? You should be! You have access to something that will never. Fail. Okay, okay…so how about this: Let’s say you could get an entire wardrobe that would never fade, wrinkle, or go out of style? Preposterous, if you’re talking about physical clothes, absolute fact if you’re talking about putting on God’s love (Colossians 3:14). Check out 1 Corinthians 14:8 in the Amplified Bible, Classic Edition:

Love never fails [never fades out or becomes obsolete or comes to an end].

You want to have a better marriage? God’s love never fails!

You want to see your relationship with your brother or sister restored? God’s love never fails!

You want to be able to work in peace, but you have this one coworker who just gets at your every last nerve? God’s love never fails!

Woot!

Homework:

Today, take some time to think about situations and people in your life in light of what you’ve read. No matter what the circumstance, God’s love will never fail!

30 Days of Love - Day 20: Believing the Best

Day 20: Believing the Best

(Click here for Day 19)

“Love bears up under anything and everything that comes, is ever ready to believe the best of every person, its hopes are fadeless under all circumstances, and it endures everything [without weakening].” 1 Corinthians 13:7 (AMPC)

I love the way the Amplified Bible, Classic Edition puts this whole verse, but I want to focus in on “Love…is ever ready to believe the best of every person.” How many times have we approached a particular someone in our lives with a negative mindset, automatically assuming that they’re going to be grumpy, lie to us, or say something rude? It’s easy enough to prepare for the worst when those people usually act a certain way, but God’s love calls us to a higher way of living.

Instead of assuming the worst in people, we need to be a beacon of hope. Everyone needs someone to believe in them, and we would do well to realize that every single person on this planet was created for a purpose. Some have chosen not to walk in God’s plan for their lives, and many do so because they don’t know how, or feel that it’s too late…that their lives can’t change. We know better than that, and we need to stop allowing ourselves to be mouthpieces for the enemy’s lies, and let God use us to encourage others.

This brings us to a crucial matter—not judging other people. Jesus said that the way we judge is how we’ll be judged (ouch, and that’s found in Matthew 7:1-2, by the way). Paul said in Romans 2:1 that when we judge, we’re guilty of the same things we’re judging them about!

But wait! There’s more!

Who are you to judge another’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls. Indeed, he will be made to stand, for God is able to make him stand. Romans 14:4

Who are we to judge someone else? It’s God they answer to, not us. Then, Paul caps that off with the beautiful statement that God is able to and will make them stand.

Be that ray of hope someone else needs today. Don’t pay any mind to what they look like, how they talk, or anything else you can see with your eyes. Ask the Lord to help you express His love toward them and to use you to lift them up. People can pick up on our attitudes, so let them pick up a good one!

Homework:

Our goal in this life is to reach the world for Jesus, and ministering to those without hope is a huge part of that. Determine today to quit judging people and instead carry the love of God to them. You are an ambassador for Christ! Read 2 Corinthians 5:20. Oh, and say this out loud: “I am always ready to believe the best in every person!”

Also remove this sentence, or anything like it, from your speech: “They’ll never change.”

30 Days of Love - Day 19: Praying for Others

Day 19: Praying for Others

(Click here for Day 18)

“For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding.” Colossians 1:9

There have many times in my Christian walk when I didn’t quite know what to pray for someone. I used to just throw around kind of vague prayers for them that mostly consisted of asking the Lord to bless the person I was praying for. I believe God honored those prayers while I was in the process of growing and learning, but I also believe that He took my prayer life up a level when He showed me what I’m about to tell you.

Praying in the Spirit is crucial to praying effective prayers (see Ephesians 6:18). Praying in the Spirit means you’re praying from your spirit, led and directed by God, and it doesn’t necessarily mean praying in tongues. As you enter into God’s presence, He may stir you to pray a particular Scripture over a person’s life, or to bind Satan from hindering them—anything that the Holy Spirit directs you to pray is “praying in the Spirit.”

If you need some good starting ground when it comes to praying for others, you can’t go wrong with the will of God as it is revealed in the Word of God. There are a few prayers found in Ephesians and Colossians in particular that I pray for people. You can find them in Ephesians 1:15-21, Ephesians 3:14-21, and Colossians 1:9-14. Reading these lines alone should show you why these passages make for excellent prayers:

 That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him. Ephesians 1:17

That He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man. Ephesians 3:16

For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding. Colossians 1:9

If you knew someone who was going through a trial of whatever type, praying that God would strengthen them through His Spirit in their inner man (their spirit) would be an excellent thing to pray, wouldn’t it?

If you’re wondering just how you go about praying Scripture, you just have to make it personal. I’ll use my own name as an example:

“Father, I know You know what’s going on with Tammy. I ask you to give her the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of you. Flood the eyes of her understanding with light!”

Homework:

Take some time today to read the prayers I wrote about above. Get in the habit of praying them over yourself and others.

30 Days of Love - Day 18: Forgive

Day 18: Forgive

(Click here for Day 17)

“And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses.” Mark 11:25

“I’ll forgive, but I won’t forget.” I used to say that. But, according to God’s way of love, that’s not really forgiveness. When God forgives, He forgets. He doesn’t hold us accountable for that sin anymore. I know this may be tough for you to read, but truly forgiving means forgetting.

For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more. Hebrews 8:12

The Greek word for “remember” in this verse means to remind, remember, or be mindful of something. God said he would not remember or be mindful of our sins anymore. Again, if God’s love works this way, then this is how we should be too. 

Those people who have hurt you or offended you in some way—have they falsely accused you to the extent that you were found guilty of blasphemy or treason, whipped, and then hung on a cross? No? That’s what happened to Jesus, as you already know, and here’s what He had to say to the Father about them:

Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.” Luke 23:34

Is that not amazing and humbling? I’m not even going to say any more about it. I’m just going to let that sit. You can read on when you’re ready.

When you forgive someone for something they’ve done to you, you don’t have to feel forgiving. If your flesh is still steaming mad, it doesn’t matter at all. You just take it to the Father, forgive, and let it go. The faster you deal with it, the better. Don’t give the devil anymore playtime. He will try to bring it back up, even decades later, but you just tell him, “No, devil, I’ve forgiven that.” This is where the "forgetting" part comes in. As time goes on, the memories of wrongdoings will fade. When they come up, it'll feel almost like it happened to someone else. 

Another point for you to understand is that forgiveness doesn’t mean you must have a relationship with those people. You can have nothing but love in your heart for someone, but be forced to end the relationship in order to protect yourself and those in your care. There are people even now as I write that I have had to maintain a certain distance from. I’m not mad at them, I hold no ill will against them, and as a matter of fact, have nothing but love for them, but God directed me to stay away. So I do.

Lastly, Mark 11:25 says that you need to forgive so that your Father can forgive you. Don’t keep yourself from God’s best by refusing to forgive.

Homework:

Read the parable of the unforgiving servant in Matthew 18:21-35.

30 Days of Love - Day 17: When You Hit a Wall

Day 17: When You Hit a Wall

(Click here for Day 16)

“Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.” Ephesians 6:13

There will be times when you feel like you’ve hit a wall, spiritually. You’ve prayed, but no new direction or wisdom from above has come to you, and nothing seems to be changing. You’ve decided you’re not going to give up now, but you’d really like to move forward already!

In my experience, hitting a wall usually means one of two things: you need to stand where you’re at until your victory comes to pass in your life, or there’s something that the Lord directed you to do, but you didn’t do it.

Let’s talk about the latter first. If you feel stuck, it may just be that the Lord gave you a specific bit of instruction, but you failed to follow through. God can’t bring you to the next step of your victory without you taking the step He gave you before. Ask Him if there’s something you haven’t acted on. If there is, repent, and then do whatever it is He told you to do.

If you’ve done all that you know to do and all that God has directed you to do, then it’s time for you to simply stand your ground. Keep on doing what you’ve been doing. If nothing appears to be changing in your circumstances or with the people you love, don’t allow yourself to get discouraged. If you keep standing, you will get the victory.

If you plant tomatoes, are you going to get upset when the fruit isn’t quite ready to pick yet? Are you going to rip the whole plant out of the ground before it’s time? No! You’ve fed it, you’ve watered it, you’ve carefully dug up any weeds that came up around it—now it’s time to patiently wait for the harvest to be ready.

And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. Galatians 6:9

If we really believe what the Bible says—that we will reap a harvest—then we won’t lose heart or grow weary.

Here’s another excellent verse on not growing weary:

But you, be strong and do not let your hands be weak, for your work shall be rewarded! 2 Chronicles 15:7

Don’t let yourself get weak! Your work—all that love you’ve been planting—shall be rewarded!

Homework:

Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you anything that the Lord directed you to do that you didn’t follow through on. Be quick to repent and then get it done. I encourage you to keep it up! You’re doing awesome!

30 Days of Love - Day 16: How Jesus Loved – Part Two

Day 16: How Jesus Loved – Part Two

(Click here for Day 15)

“Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” Hebrews 12:2

Doing things God’s way can take some effort. Jesus wrestled with doing what God wanted Him to do in the Garden of Gethsemane to the point where He began sweating blood. Let’s look at what the Bible says about what Jesus went through at that moment in time.

Then He said to them, “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful and deeply distressed, even to death. Stay here and watch with Me.” Matthew 26:38

Jesus said that His soul (mind, will, and emotions) was exceedingly sorrowful. So fierce was the fight to resist temptation and keep on His path to win our salvation, that He began sweating blood.

And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground. Luke 22:44

I know that I haven’t resisted temptation to the point that I started sweating blood. I’ve given in to temptation over far lesser things than Jesus was facing at that moment. Yet, He rose up from that place and allowed Himself to be arrested. What was it that kept Jesus from running from the plan for Him and thus sealing our doom? It’s the same thing that will keep us from yielding to the temptation to quit.

Hebrews 12:2 says that we are to “look unto Jesus.” Why? Well, for one, because He resisted sin to the point of bloodshed. He went through every temptation imaginable, and yet came out victorious—He never gave up. So we should know how He was able to do that! It says He endured the cross “for the joy that was set before Him.” He knew that His life and death on this earth would accomplish His Father’s will—to bridge the gap between humanity and Himself by means of His son.

My dear brothers and sisters, this is how we overcome. We keep our eyes on Jesus; keep our focus on Him and the end goal. If we keep our eye on the prize, so to speak, we won’t let anything encroach upon our faith in God’s Word. So, if you’re feeling discouraged, depressed, or disenchanted, it’s because your focus has been off. You might have started off well, but as time has gone on, the problems have slowly become forefront again. Get your eyes back on Him!

You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You. Isaiah 26:3

The first part of that verse reminds me of God’s peace guarding our hearts and minds as Philippians 4:7 says. When we keep our focus on God’s Word, rather than the problem, the Bible says that God Himself will keep us in perfect peace!

That doesn’t mean the enemy will just quit trying to get your focus wonky again. He most certainly will. You just stomp your foot and tell him no, all right?

Homework:

Read Luke 22-24 and be reminded of what Jesus endured. Also read Hebrews 12:3-4. Keep in mind as you read what made it possible for Him to keep going—His focus was on the end result, not the pain He was going through. Just as Jesus had the victory in the end, you will too, if you don’t lose heart. Take some time to thank Him for not giving up!

30 Days of Love - Day 15: How Jesus Loved – Part One

Day 15: How Jesus Loved - Part One

(Click here for Day 14)

“Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends. You are My friends if you do whatever I command you.” John 15:13-14

Jesus said there was no greater love than to lay down your life for your friends, so I’m going to go ahead and take Him at His Word. I’ve believed that Jesus laid His life down for me since becoming a Christian decades ago. What I didn’t see back then was that He laid down His life every single day, not just when He let them nail Him to a cross.

And He said to them, “Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s business?” Luke 2:49

Then Jesus answered and said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner.” John 5:19

Jesus, as a choice of His own will, not only allowed Himself to be crucified, but lived His entire life to serve God. He didn’t do anything unless it was what the Father wanted Him to do. Before you start thinking “Yeah, but that’s Jesus! He’s God, you know!” Yeah, I know. But the Bible also says that He laid all of that down when He came to live here among us in the flesh.

“But made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men.” Philippians 2:7

That phrase “no reputation” in the Greek actually means “to empty” or “make empty” (and the same Greek word is used for “made” in that verse as well).

When Jesus cast out demons, turned water into wine, and healed the sick, He did it as a human being. He was able to do all of it because the Holy Spirit had come upon Him, empowering Him (see Matthew 3:13-17). After Jesus ascended into heaven, He sent The Comforter—the Holy Spirit—to empower us too (John 14:26, 15:26, 16:7; Acts 1:8; 1 John 4:13)!

Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father. John 14:12

If that doesn’t toss that “Yeah, but that was Jesus” line out the window for you, I don’t know what will! If He had just said “The works that I do he will do also” I’d have been convinced. But He took it one giant leap further by saying that we would do even greater works! Hello!

Now let’s backtrack a bit to our main verse for the day. Jesus said that someone who really loves will lay down their lives for their friends. Then He follows that up by telling us that we are His friends if we do whatever He says—if we make the choice to lay down our lives to do what He tells us to do. When we do what He says, it’s proof that we love Him. Isn’t that awesome?

Homework:

If there’s some part of your brain telling you that serving the Lord is drudgery, rebuke it. Tomorrow we’re going to see how that is a total lie. Before then, I want you to read some of the Gospel accounts of Jesus. Try to pick out any times when Jesus seemed depressed because He’d been serving God so hard.