LED THROUGH LOVE!
There is an old saying that speaks truth, “you can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink!” God, on the other hand, through His great love and goodness, makes us “want” to drink of His “living water” and partake of “the living bread.” Learning to know Him makes us desire more of Him and gives us an insatiable thirst for “all He is and all He has to give us.” Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance? (Romans 2:4).
Anyone who considers God as a taskmaster, short tempered, and harsh, really has never tasted to see the goodness of God. I had a teenager tell me the other day, “you should never bother God with your everyday living and needs. You are supposed to do everything you can to fix your own problems.” That isn’t what the scripture says! “For in Him we live and move and have our being, as also some of your own poets have said, ‘For we are also His offspring’” (Acts 17:28).
Christ is our example and our life. God is love and we read in Romans 13:10: “Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.” Love does not damage a relationship or person. Love leads to a good outcome and work. Our natures often clash with God’s commandments and must be changed and purified. “I will be a Father to you, and you shall be My sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty” (2CO 6:18). “Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God” (Corinthians 7:1).
Our automatic reflex to sandpaper being used on us, is to pull away. I have been guilty of being abrasive in disputes or differences of opinion and God is telling me this part of my nature has to go. When we operate through prayer, and Christ’s Spirit of love, Christ can operate through our words and actions. To do an effective work, we can only operate by and lead others to righteousness (and Christ himself) through the Spirit of God’s love.
We all are in relationships and we are either making the case for Christ dwelling within us, or we are showing openly that we operate our lives under our own guidance and make room for sin. The scripture tells us: “Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God. In this the children of God and the children of the devil are manifest: Whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is he who does not love his brother” (1John 3:9-10). We often do not see that we “love through words as well as feelings.” Our words are the expression of our love. Perfect love, loves at all times. It is the Spirit of Christ within us. Sometimes we fail to ask Him to sanctify our every word, and fill us with the Spirit of His love at all times.
I am learning the lesson of “always” operating in Christ’s Spirit of love, and never allowing my flesh to operate in the feelings of my flesh. I am not to allow any feeling or attitude to remove God’s Spirit of love which abides in me. When I do, I have tarnished the image of Christ within and ignored the living word. If we live a life before our children of fractured relationships, abrasiveness, disgust, hate, and discord we will reap the same.
I see so many fractured relationships and such agony of the soul because of it. Nearly a year ago, God began to say to me and my family (through prophecies), “Come up higher.” What a privilege it is to see God at work. The first things that the Spirit of God works on is our flesh. All abiding Christians (dwelling in the shadow of the Almighty) have laid aside the sins of the world, but often we cannot see the weaknesses of character, flaws, and sins in our own words and attitudes. This year has been one of the most rewarding years I have ever lived through. I can see how Paul the apostle and other saints were able to sing while they were chained in a dank cell and had been beaten for their testimony. Our loving God knows how to remove from us those sins that mar our perfection. Even Paul said he had not reached perfection, but he was pressing on for the prize “of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”
I am seeing a miracle of devotion to God in my family at a depth of dedication and willingness I have never witnessed before. They filled the pew, but now I see God has filled their hearts with a flame of fire and dedication to Him that I have only dreamed about. Yes, our God is on the move to perfect His children and “whosoever will” may come. This move of God is best described in God’s words to me: “From this night on it is no longer all about you, it is all about me.” What a change of attitude and understanding of God that has brought to me and my family.
My prayer:
Dearest Lord and Savior,
I want my life from this time on to be all about you! Take away every part of me that is “self-centered” and make me “God centered.” I know I must learn a “higher protocol” to be a part of your kingdom and to totally live under your reign over me. I praise you for what I have already experienced! I treasure the glories of your kingdom operation in my life more than all the treasures of this world put together. You have raised my eyes to the meaning of eternity and its eternal rewards. I am beginning to understand as never before how powerful you are, and how you can use that which is foolish (me) to bring glory to your wondrous name. Through your love burning in me I can be a light and lead others to you. Amen.
