Tag: love

Unity

On By vickleaIn Scripture4 Comments

What does “unity” mean and how do we get there in this world that seems more divided each day? Many years ago, I studied in a history class the root causes of division between people, with my teacher instructing us that the basic problem was that some people have and others don’t. The ones who don’t want what the “haves” possess, so thus begins bitterness, envy and division. I believed what the teacher said then and I believe that this division has spread to families and even churches. Sadly.

I have been staying in NC in a home filled with the opposite of unity. There is bitterness, anger and unhappiness abounding. So, instead of good and pleasant, it is awful and very unpleasant. I am not happy here because I don’t feel that I can change anything, caught as I am between the factions that are determined to attack each other. Without the Lord, this situation is unredeemable, and I am doing all I can to stand in the gap and present God to them, the God of love, forgiveness and acceptance.

I have to pray a lot here, with a constant attitude of prayer, lest I lash out and tell my sibling how I see her actions and how she is hurting others. I can say a few things to encourage but nothing much that seems to be making a difference and that is discouraging. Still I persist and pray with my husband daily for strength, physical, mental and spiritual. The whole armor of God is a necessity here!

Speaking quietly and with soothing words seems to help some but it isn’t bringing the unity that I crave to see. Years of bitterness and resentment are seething under the surface, waiting to bubble out. Do I understand what is actually happening? Yes, of course. This is spiritual warfare!

The greatest example of love that Jesus gave us was His sacrifice on the cross. Thus, I am attempting daily to show love in practical ways so that some peace is found in the environment. It’s hard to be with someone who hates people just because of what they believe, but that’s where I am now. I’m at the point where I am praying and then trying to muddle through and make it to the end of my visit without damaging my own health too much. I am sure this is not what God envisioned when he made us a family, and I feel guilty about disappointing Him, but I don’t know what else to do but pray and stand.

This week has been beyond difficult for me, and I sincerely appreciate all of the prayers for me and this situation. I have five more days here and then I can go home and recover.

Have a blessed Saturday, my friends! Remember to hold your loved ones close and to show love to all whom you meet. You never know what a difference you might make!

Seeking the Good of Others

On By vickleaIn Scripture3 Comments

What does the word “seeking” actually mean? According to http://dictionary.com, “seek” means “to go in search or quest of.” Synonyms sited for “seek” include to pursue or to follow. So, having defined the word, why should you care what it means?

Do you see that? Jesus told us to love others as we love ourselves and Paul wrote to seek the good of others, to pursue their good, to look for it diligently. We are to show preference for others and their needs. In this world of constant competition and one-upmanship, we as Christians need to be an example of putting others above ourselves and our own needs. That may mean going back in a line further so the harried mom can take your place. It may mean yielding to the driver who cut you off instead of trying to “show them” how they should be driving. It also means fulfilling commitments because others are counting on you to be there when you said you would.

We are to value the interests of others more than we value our own. I can honestly say that my husband Harry has done this for me in more ways than I can count since I had my stroke seven years ago. He may really want to watch a football game on Saturday afternoon, but if I need to go to the library, he will leave the game and take me. More importantly, he takes me cheerfully without one word of complaint. If I need to eat an early dinner because I’m tired, he leaves the news that he enjoys nightly and makes an early dinner for me. In fact, Harry has made almost all of the meals since 2015 when I got home from the hospital. At first, it was because I couldn’t stand long enough to cook or even recall how to do so. But his cooking became a labor of love as he looked for new menu items that would entice me to eat without salt and now, with low potassium, too. There are too many things he does to name them all, but the same man who used to tell me to leave him alone until his game ends now leaves the game behind and helps me with whatever I need. So, what do I think happened? Well, he became more like Christ when he almost lost me in that ER and ICU. I think, although I do not know for sure, that God touched him in a special way while I was healing and the heart that had become accustomed to having me around saw me as more valuable to him. I like to think that we both see more value in each other and put each other’s interest higher than our own. Thus we have been married for almost fifty years and both regularly choose what the other prefers. Harry needs the radio on a high volume when we are traveling in the car because of his hearing deficit. I tolerate the loud noise because I know that he can’t hear the show otherwise. He, in turn, turns the radio down when a loud commercial comes on, especially if it has a lot of bass to it, because he knows that since my stroke I cannot tolerate those reverberations. There is a lot of give and take in our relationship and we work at making it work for us.

But this verse is not focused on marriage relationships. Instead, it focuses on all of our personal interactions with others. When you are shopping and give the clerk a ten dollar bill and they accidentally give you too much change back, do you return to them the extra amount? When you are walking down a crowded sidewalk, do you move to the side so the woman with packages and two small children has room to pass by? During the pandemic, items like toilet paper became hard to find. Did you step back and allow others to have the coveted item, deciding to wait longer to fulfill your own need? There are numerous ways daily in which we can show others that we value their interests above our own. Take a few minutes and think about how you are doing in this endeavor. Don’t beat yourself up because you fall short; we all do sometimes. Rather, strive to do and be better. That’s called growth.

As I write this, I am at my sister’s home in NC. She is adjusting better now and not as negative as before, so that is a praise report. While I am here, I know that my needs have to come secondary to hers, especially since she is going blind and is very unhappy with life in general. So, when I am tired, I stay awake anyway to keep her company because I know that she is lonely. We eat dinner on her time schedule, not mine, because she has to take meds at a certain time daily. In general, I knew before I came that her interests would need to be placed first and because I love her, that has been easy to do, not a sacrifice at all. That being said, I will be here for almost two weeks, so I need to keep my eyes focused on meeting her needs and not my own. For that, I would like your prayers.

Have a blessed day as you look for opportunities to seek the good of others!

Mercy and Compassion

On By vickleaIn Scripture2 Comments

Just a short encouragement today to do what God says and to show mercy and compassion to all that we meet. We don’t know what others are going through, but we know that everyone is facing something new every day. Instead of looking at ways to get back at someone who offended you, how about looking at the ways that you can show love to them. After all, isn’t that what Jesus told us to do?

May your day be blessed with others who will show mercy and compassion to you just as you extend it to them.

The Little Word “As”

On By vickleaIn Scripture1 Comment

Once again, there is that little word “as” that carries a mountain of significance with it. According to dictionary.com, it means “to the same degree as, amount or extent.” Makes you think, doesn’t it? Do you love your neighbor to the same extent that you love yourself? And who is your neighbor? Everyone with whom you come into contact is your neighbor! God made them so and expects us to trust everyone the same way that we would want to be treated, loving them the same way as we love ourselves. Food for thought for today.

Have a blessed day!

Our Clothing

On By vickleaIn Scripture8 Comments

I have read a lot of commentaries and different Biblical versions about putting on the whole armor of God. But what goes under that armor is also important. Did you know that the Bible tells us how we are to clothe ourselves?

I have read the book of Colossians numerous times, meditating on its verses. But this verse somehow escaped my attention until our Bible study group met on Monday night. I pondered it then and today this same verse was in my daily devotional. God does want us to put on the whole armor of God, but underneath that armor, He wants us clothed with mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. If we are clothed in something, that is what people see when they see us, those qualities that make Jesus’s presence evident to others.

The chapter continues with this verse about forgiveness. How can we be clothed with Godly characteristics if we don’t forgive? The answer is that we can’t. It’s like going out in public with a shirt that is ripped down the middle and expecting no one to notice. Lack of forgiveness causes a root of bitterness inside the person who chooses to hold on to it. The person you are not forgiving is either not aware of it or chooses to ignore it. Either way, it doesn’t hurt them as much as the lack of forgiveness hurts you. The very important word in the verse is “as”. A tiny little word that means so much…the same way the Lord forgave you is how you should forgive others. He forgave each of us of everything, so we should do likewise to others. Grudges are not an item of clothing that we should be wearing around our shoulders.

Finally, there is love, the binding agent. I vaguely remember my chemistry class in which we were making a glue-type substance and we were told that one of the elements we were using was the binding agent, so we had to be careful to add it at the proper time. Love has to always be added to all of the other clothing that we are wearing because it is the seam that holds the clothing together on our bodies. Without love, we can’t exhibit the other qualities in any way that creates unity. In this divided world, love is an absolutely necessary quality for Christians to put on daily. You don’t like someone’s politics? Love them anyway. You don’t like someone’s selfish actions? Love them anyway. Someone is rude to you, in traffic or in a store or at work? Love them anyway. Love is the one thing that will draw people to you and to your witness about Christ. Once they see love, they can look at the other “clothing” that you are wearing and examine the gifts of His character that God has put on you. But first they must see love.

Have a beautiful and blessed day in the Lord, making every effort to put on the right clothes before you venture out into His creation.

A Message of Love

On By vickleaIn Scripture1 Comment

Love those who may be the most unlovable because they need to know the power of love the most.

Have a blessed and glorious Sabbath Day! Remember to look for those who need you to show them love and don’t be afraid to reach out. Be the hands of the Lord today! Live, laugh, love!

Happy Valentine’s Day!

On By vickleaIn Scripture9 Comments

Today is a day when candy and flowers are given and many restaurants expect a lot of business. But it is also a day when many are lonely or depressed and one that is dreaded by those who feel unloved. In a world that is so big and busy, take time today to practice the commandment to love one another. Know someone who is shut in and lonely? Call or visit.

Maybe you are lonely yourself today. You can have all kinds of people around you and still be lonely because of the hole in your heart that was left because of a death or abandonment. The good news is that God loves you so much that He sent His Son to die for you and to fill all of the empty spaces in your life and your heart. That’s not just a platitude. It’s truth! For many years, I was alone on Valentine’s Day as my husband traveled with the military. Yes, he would call and frequently send a card. But I used to have “pity me” parties, thinking of my friends getting ready for dinner and movie dates while I sat alone at home with three children. But the Lord did not want me wallowing in my self-pity. He wanted me to think about others. So, the children and I made Valentines for those who had no one, the widows and the single moms. They may have been cheesy-looking, but they were from the heart and when a small child delivers one with a smile, then they were accepted gratefully. So, my advice is to find someone who is as lonely or lonelier than you are and show them God’s love by giving them yours.

How do you have a successful marriage in a world that does not value a union between man and woman? My suggestion there is to pray together daily and to read I Corinthians 13 as though your relationship depends on the truths found there. God’s secret to a successful marriage is to put the other person’s needs ahead of your own, to love unselfishly and to give of your time always. Not easy things to do, and ones that I have failed at often. But, there is also forgiveness and knowing that you are forgiven so you should forgive others, especially your spouse.

In almost forty-nine years of marriage, there have been some real disappointments and some times when I wanted to pack up and move out, regain my independence and march to the beat of my own drummer. So, what stopped me? God. That simple. God, speaking to my heart and reminding me of my commitment to my husband, before Him and before a group of friends and family. After years of being alone while my husband was deployed, I had more than a few well-meaning friends and family members tell me to just leave him and start over. But God did not want that for me. He wanted His best, a marriage that has its problems but one in which He is the center of the relationship, reminding me consistently of His commitment to me and our commitment to each other. Marriage doesn’t get easier as you age because, if you’re like me, you get crankier and more demanding. I get upset more easily, knowing that dreams that haven’t been fulfilled yet will likely never be on this earth. But, God…He keeps His promises, so I have chosen to keep mine. Wherever you are, whatever situation in which you find yourself, remember that God loves you with an everlasting and totally unselfish love. More importantly, He wants you to reach out to others with His love and show them that they matter to Him.

Happy Valentine’s Day. Be blessed to be a blessing!

A Prayer for Love, Knowledge and Insight

On By vickleaIn Scripture7 Comments

It has been almost twenty years since our youngest child left home for college. That was the beginning of the end of having children at home, the beginning of becoming an “empty nester.” When each child left, I gave them plenty of advice: finances, relationships, and finding a good church to go to. I prayed for them daily; in fact, their names and a prayer were never far from my thoughts and still are. But this prayer that I found in my devotional this morning is what I should have been praying for all of these years.

It is Paul’s prayer for the Philippians, but it is also a prayer that we can and should apply to all of our loved ones. For it is in this prayer that we find the love, the knowledge and the insight necessary to fulfill a life of promise in Christ. It is a prayer for making good choices and to one day be able to stand before the Lord “blameless.” It’s not enough to know God’s Word; it has to be applied to one’s life. That is my prayer for my children, for my friends, for other family members and for my lost loved ones and friends. Jesus saves. He left us the Holy Spirit to give us insight and discernment, His Word to give us knowledge. If we stay close to Him, we “abound in love.” How can we do any less than love others when He chose to die for all?

Yes, I pray for our children daily. I also pray for others whom God brings to my mind. Prayer is a powerful weapon in the hands of the saints of God. We need to use it as Paul did, to teach and to bless.

Have a blessed day filled with abounding love, knowledge and insight!

God’s Love

On By vickleaIn Scripture16 Comments

www.bible.com/1171/1jn.4.16.mev

This verse was just what I needed to read this morning. It opened a door for me that I thought that I had closed long ago. You see, I don’t tell this to many people, but I grew up in an upper middle class home where everything physical that I needed and much that I wanted was provided, but I didn’t really feel loved. My mom told me frequently how ugly I was and even told me to plan to go to college and get a good job because no one would want to marry ugly me. I recall going to the bathroom where I could be alone and softly singing to myself the song that I had learned by going to church with my neighbor, “Jesus Loves Me.” I didn’t really know what that meant, but it soothed my aching young heart. Anyway, I studied my constantly. I didn’t date in high school at all because I was focused on studying. I had a high GPA in high school, got a scholarship and went to college where I studied to be a teacher. When I met my future husband the summer before my senior year, he kept telling me how beautiful I was and I knew, from experience with my mom, that he had to be lying. Thus, later, when he said that he loved me, I didn’t believe him. Not really. Then, in February of 1973, a neighbor told me about Jesus and His love for me. I read the book of John and discovered that love for myself. It was the forever kind of love that I had craved my entire life. I eagerly accepted Jesus into my heart and my life. For the first time in my life, I felt love and it was such a different feeling. I tried to explain it to my mom and dad, but they just dismissed my testimony. I explained it to my fiancé and he told me to get rid of this Jesus thing or he was walking away. Well, I told him that Jesus died for me and since he had not ever done anything so bold and loving for me, I chose Jesus. When Harry understood that I meant it, he started going to church with me and he, too, accepted Jesus into his heart. Two months later, we were married. I finally knew what love was because I had met the Man who is love. I knew God’s love for me, the kind that lasts forever. My new pastor soothed my old wounds and told me that God made me just the way He wanted me to be and God doesn’t make “junk.” Thus armed with new confidence, I have gone through over forty years of life and almost forty eight years of marriage, knowing in my heart, in the deepest part of me, that I am loved. When I was alone on base after base with the military, I knew that God loved me. Through all of the trials in my life, I have held on to that truth: Jesus loves me! He always has accepted me just as I am and He loves me, with all of my flaws and failings, He loves me. I am enjoying a life filled with God’s love. Does that mean that everything has been wonderful during my entire life? Of course not! God doesn’t promise that all will work out just as we want or expect. He does promise His forever love, and that is enough for me. I hope that is enough for you, too. If you don’t believe me and my testimony, I pray that you will believe God’s Word. It’s His gift of love to each of us, so that we can learn and hold on to His precious promises. God bless each of you with a special portion of God’s love today. No matter what happens today, you and God are going through it together, and His love will be there for you…always!

People Need to See Jesus in Us

On By vickleaIn Uncategorized5 Comments

I keep hearing people say that if we want change, we have to be the change that we want. I interpret that to mean that we need to be more like Jesus so that people can see Him in us. There is no greater need in the world today than the character of Jesus demonstrated in each of us. How do we react when the Supreme Court makes a ruling that makes abortions more likely? How do we react when someone tells us that they are gay or transgender? The topic of Dr. Denison’s main article today is just this, the idea that our reaction shows people Jesus, or it doesn’t.

What Our Cullture Needs Most by Dr. Denison

It is impossible for us to make disciples if we don’t show love. That was the central part of Jesus’s message and of His character.

I hope that each of you has a blessed day and remember that wherever you go, you are an ambassador for Christ.