Love Gives

This is real love- not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.  Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other. ~1 John 4:10-11 (NLT)

Giving is the very nature of love.  God loved us so much He gave and God’s love in our hearts will compel us to give also.  We can love others lavishly and unconditionally with our Lord’s love.  Our love on the other hand tends to be selfish.  We look for what we can get thinking it will bring us happiness.  We want new and we want more.  God wants us to keep our “wants” in perspective.  We can’t let ourselves believe that “new and more” are going to bring us the lasting happiness we seek.  The truth is that the new wears off and all we are left with is “stuff” that has to be cleaned and taken care of.  We should question our hearts often.  It’s important that we cultivate our hearts for God’s love and be always ready to receive it.  The Lord compares our natural hearts to unplowed, hard ground.  That type of soil can neither receive nor reproduce.  We are called to be vessels for God’s use.  A vessel is something that holds for the purpose of dispensing.  What are you holding right now?  Whatever it is God has given, He has given for the purpose of you dispensing to bring nourishment and refreshment to others.  God says He who refreshes others will himself be refreshed.   Jesus stood in the gap for us and to see the breaking of chains in the lives of people’s hearts and lives we must be ready and willing to stand in the gap for them as well.  Jesus is our great example.  He asked God from the cross to forgive those who were in the process of crucifying Him.  He didn’t have to make that special request.  But He did because His heart was broken for those who did not know the truth about love.  They thought living for themselves was the only way things were going to work out for them.  But Jesus showed us all a different way to live, a life of loving service to God and man.

The only pursuit that leads to true happiness is receiving God’s love and then sharing it.  Wouldn't the world be a beautiful place if everyone started their day seeking God's presence and will for their life and then going to find someone that they could be a blessing to?  We can live that way if we choose to.  Joshua told the Israelites in Joshua 24:15 “…choose today whom you will serve…But as for me and my family, we will serve the Lord.” (NLT) In a nutshell, serving God is serving others.  When was the last time you prepared to be a blessing?  When was the last time you looked ahead to anticipate a need someone may have and utilized your time and resources to prepare to meet that need?  Do you have a plan to be a blessing to someone who tells you they have never accepted Jesus as their Savior?  Or are you leaving that up to the “professionals”?  We have all been anointed to share God’s word and His love. God’s love is the most wonderful gift we will ever get.  It flows to us every minute of every day and it’s time we start letting it flow through us every minute of every day.  A grateful heart is ready and willing to follow in their Saviors footsteps with unfailing love and wonderful deeds.  Do you have a grateful heart?

Let them give thanks to the Lord for His unfailing love and His wonderful deeds for mankind ~Psalm 107:8 (NIV)

Who has God put in your path today that you are able to be a blessing to?

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