Love

 “The most important one [commandment],” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength." The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.” ~ Mark 12


I once heard someone say the verse "love your neighbor as yourself", but it brought on an entirely new meaning. How am I supposed to love my neighbor as myself, if I have no respect for myself? I do not mean a self-seeking type of love for self. I mean seeing ourselves the way God sees us and speaking to and treating ourselves with thoughts and actions the way we would treat others and would want to be treated.

How can I experience and give love if I have not found the way to treat myself with love and speak to myself the way our heavenly Father speaks to us? The criticizing words we often speak to ourselves or keeping records of all the times we have messed up, or not forgiving ourselves for wrongdoings... would we speak to another person who is going through a struggle the same way we speak to ourselves?


I truly believe that Jesus gave us the command of utmost importance, "to love your neighbor as yourself", that we are to treat ourselves with the same kind of love that He gives us and for us to give to others.


"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails." ~ 1 Corinthians 13

Love is patient. Are we patient with ourselves? Are we patient through failures and disappointments and hopeful? Love does not envy. How often do we compare ourselves to others? It is not easily angered. How often do we become angry and criticizing when we don't match up to what we hoped for? Love keeps no record of wrongs. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. I really would like to take this definition of love and apply it to the way I treat myself, the way God treats us, and the way He wants us to treat others.

We are to love the Lord our God with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength, and then to apply His love towards us to ourselves, and towards others.

"Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are." 1 Corinthians 3:16-17

God's Power

"I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come." - Ephesians 1

"I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen". - Ephesians 3

I just found these verses really amazing, and they kind of contrast with the last post. I thought these verses just show how much we cannot rely on ourselves and feelings. In 1 John 3:20 it says "..God is greater than our feelings, and He knows everything." Ephesians says that "God's love surpasses knowledge", and Philippians 4:7 says also that His peace "which transcends all understanding, will guard [our] hearts and minds in Christ Jesus". I think these are good verses to read when we are having our darkest days--when we find it most difficult to feel love or hope. I find peace in these verses, knowing that God is greater than present feelings. We can be assured that when we are at our lowest, and ever feel worthless, hopeless, or heartbroken.... to never give up on the Love of Christ which surpasses our temporary emotions; His love transcends our knowledge. So even if we are not feeling loved, He loves us. Even if we do not feel the presence of God, he is there. We can put our hope in these verses knowing his love is so great that we cannot even grasp the breadth, width, length, and depth of it, and we must continue to put our faith and hope in Him and ask for peace and strength to continue obedience to follow His instruction even when we are discouraged and not sure where He is leading us, because he is "far above all rule and authority, power and dominion". Our thoughts are not like His thoughts, and our ways are not like His ways (Isaiah 55:8)... and, for some reason, I find so much peace in that. :)

Still, small voice..

In 1 Kings 19 the Lord wants Elijah to see Him, and He asks Elijah to stand on a mountain where the following events happen:

"a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper (some versions say it was a "still, small voice", or a "gentle breeze"). When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave."

How often are we distracted and actually drawn away from God because we are looking for Him to be revealed through the storms of life, a miracle,  or an extraordinary manifestation,  when He is really right beside us whispering in our ear? Elijah saw the rocks violently shattering before his eyes, an earthquake, and fire, and he probably thought it was of God. And it makes me think, how often do we believe that until we see a miraculous event will we experience the presence of God? When God is really the quiet, still, gentle voice or breeze that we fail to notice amidst such chaos?


What I learned from this verse that even though God is all-powerful and mighty, and even though He has the capability to do miraculous things, He chooses to accentuate and reveal to us His character that is abundant in humility and gentleness. He teaches us that He will reveal Himself to us in the stillness and quiet of our lives if we listen. It also teaches me that if God speaks to us in a still quiet voice, that in order for us to hear Him we have to be still and listen instead of letting the chaos and busyness around us distract us.