Scriptures on the Love of God

Since we are coming off of Valentine’s Day and the rather secular focus on love, I thought it would be nice to simply read a few verses demonstrating God’s love for us.  For a complete devotional on this topic, please see:  God’s Valentine.  This list of verses is not meant to be exhaustive.  Keep in mind, that even on our worst days, God still loves us deeply and unconditionally.  It is my heart’s prayer that you will experience God’s love in your heart and around you through the reading of these verses, as well as the whole of God’s Word.  Be blessed through the following verses.

Personal Photo

💖💖💖

The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing. 

  (Zephaniah 3:17 KJV)

💓💓💓

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.

He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

  (John 3:16-18 KJV)

💕💕💕

 Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God.

He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.

In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him.

Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.

No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us.  

(1 John 4:7-12 KJV)

Photo from Pixabay

And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.

Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.

There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.

We love him, because he first loved us.

If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?

And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also. 

(1 John 4:16-21 KJV)

💞💞💞

A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.

By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another. 

(John 13:34-35)

💟💟💟

If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love.

These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full.

This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you.  

(John 15:10-12 KJV)

💜💜💜

Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. 

(John 15:13 KJV)

💞💞💞💞

 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.  

(Romans 5:8 KJV)

💖💖💖

Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.  

(1 John 3:1 KJV)

Personal Photo

💟💟💟

What is your favorite verse that reminds you of God’s love for you?

What verse(s) would you add to the above verses?

Please join with me in prayer:

Dear Loving Lord, Thank You for Your love that is seen throughout Your Word.  Remind us that Your Word—the Bible—is Your love letter to us.  It is when we read Your Word with the realization of Your loving heart that we see Your love from beginning to end.  Help us to experience the depth and height of Your love for us each day.  Nudge us to share Your love with those around us each day—many are hurting and need to know that You love them and desire nothing more than a relationship with them.  Pour out Your love into our open hearts each day.  In Jesus’ Name, we pray.  Amen.

From My Heart to Yours,

Kim

Goals 2017

A man's heart deviseth his way: but the Lord directeth his steps.  

(Proverbs 16:9 KJV)

Goal as defined by Webster’s Dictionary of 1828 is:  “The end or final purpose; the end to which a design tends, or which a person aims to reach or accomplish.”[1]  Goal is a noun indicting a stopping point, as in a race or even a starting point.[2]  For the purposes of this post, I will be considering the word goal from the first sentence in this paragraph.

Word Cloud created by K. Jolly. All Rights Reserved.

We are nearing the end of the third week of this year.  The year is still fresh and new—full of possibilities.  Each New Year’s Day we receive a fresh start from God.  Of course, that is true of every day the Lord gives us, especially if we are walking in relationship with Him.

At some point in the last few years I have written about goals on this blog (please see Goals, Goals 2016).  This post is utilizing some material (with editing) from both of those posts, as well as some new thoughts.  Nevertheless, I encourage you to read what I shared the last two years; it may be helpful for you as you plan for this year.

The freshness of a new year beckons us to try new things, make changes in our lives, and accomplish a list of goals.  When we have our eyes on God, our goals should lead us ever closer to Him, rather than away from Him.  Furthermore, our goals should be healthy ones too—physically, spiritually, emotionally, and psychologically.  It is good to keep in mind that when we set goals they should be ones that do not require the cooperation of others—those goals have a high failure rate, for obvious reasons!

Many people make resolutions at the beginning of the year, abandoning them a few hours, days, or weeks later.  Why?  Perhaps the goals are far too ambitious, too vague, or require the cooperation of others.  New goals tend to require new habits to form—something that takes time and dedication to achieve.

The greatest commitment we can make as Christians is to grow and develop in a positive direction in our faith.  Taking time for silent meditation of our hearts and coming into the presence of God.  Doing this, along with dedication will help us meet the other goals we may set for ourselves.

The preparations of the heart in man, and the answer of the tongue, is from the Lord.  

(Proverbs 16:1 KJV)

It is my heart’s sincere desire that you are setting aside time in your daily schedule to commune with God and that you are growing in your relationship with Him.  God loves you so much and desires nothing more than a relationship with you.  He loves you so much, in fact, He’s crazy about you!  Keeping your eyes on the goal (prize), will help you stay focused and not get off track.  A word of caution:  be kind to yourself, realizing that some days or weeks will not be so great; things will go wrong—give yourself the grace you deserve—give yourself the grace you would give to others.  Encourage yourself over how far you have come.

Wordificator Word Art Creation by K. Jolly.  All Rights Reserved.

For the third year I have established goals for myself—these goals are fairly similar to the previous two years with a few tweaks.  For the second year, I developed two lists of goals:  general and spiritual—there is a healthy degree of overlap between the two lists, which is to be expected.  Once again, the goals are quite substantial (clearly I have learned little the last two years or I am trying to be an overachiever or punish myself).  

Even in the face of my substantial goals, I see the need for some time to simply be, to have some “margin” or “white-space” to allow God to work, and for me to rest.  (I wrote a bit more about this concept last year in my post on goals [see the link the third paragraph].)

However, I sense this year will be different.  Different in that I am using a life planner to supplement what I am already doing.  Additionally, two of my friends easily volunteered to hold me accountable to my goals.  My thoughts are to do a quick evaluation of how I am doing at the end of each month and do a more thorough evaluation quarterly (March 1, June 1, September 1, and December 1).  Perhaps evaluating how you are doing on your goals will be helpful for you as well?

Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee.

Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established.

Turn not to the right hand nor to the left: remove thy foot from evil.  

(Proverbs 4:25-27 KJV)

Discipline and accountability are key ingredients in goal setting and in achieving those goals.  The life planner has built in times to assess how I am doing with my goals; as I mentioned above, I plan to do a bit more than the life planner directs me to do, which is likely a positive idea.  

In the near future, may be even next week, I plan to share my word for the year.  In my mind, the word will guide and inform how I pursue my goals.  In my thought processes I am beginning to see how my word for the year will “make or break” how I pursue my goals or do not pursue my goals.  Moreover, it will also guide my walk with the Lord.  How is that for a “teaser”?

Setting goals, having dreams serve to give us a purpose in life.  Waking up each day with a sense of excitement, expectation, and a purpose makes it easier to get out of bed and get going on the day, especially when we are fighting against the urge to stay in bed with the cover over our heads!

My most sincere desire is that you have reserved, set aside time each day to be alone with the Lord in prayer, worship, and reading the Word.  There is no substitute for this time with the Lord.  Try making a goal to spend a certain time frame with the Lord (even write it in your planner)—keep it as you would any other appointment.  I pray that you will discover, as I have, how precious this time is and make the necessary effort to tenaciously guard it. 

Personal Photo

Personal Photo

What goals have you established to pursue this year?  Who have you asked or can you ask to hold you accountable? 

God-given goals will make an impact, not only on us but on those around us as well.  May God bless you with the drive and dedication to achieve your goals.  Be sure to encourage those around you too!

Please join with me in prayer:

Dear Lord of All, thank You for the fresh start that seems so readily apparent at the start of the year; remind us though, how each day is a fresh start and gift from You.  Although we struggle at times, we know we need to surrender our goals and the whole of our lives to You—help us to surrender.  Guide us through the discernment process of goal setting, so that our goals would be given by You for our growth and development.  Guard us from losing sight of what really matters—our relationship with You.  As always, may our greatest goal be that of being rightly related to You, having our names in the Lamb’s Book of Life, so that we can enjoy You and Heaven for all eternity.  In Jesus’ Name, we pray.  Amen.

From My Heart to Yours,

Kim

---

[1] See http://webstersdictionary1828.com/Dictionary/Goal

[2] See http://webstersdictionary1828.com/Dictionary/Goal

God’s Valentine

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.  For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.  (John 3:16-17 KJV)

Happy Valentine’s Day!  God loves you so much—more than you or anyone can begin to fathom! 

From https://www.flickr.com/photos/mimitalks/6851788041

Have you ever realized that you are God’s Valentine and that He is yours?  Think about what this means; let it seep deeply into your soul—your innermost being.  How does knowing this change your view of yourself and others? 

From  https://ellenlandreth.files.wordpress.com/2011/02/gods-valentine.jpg   God loves each and every one of His children fully and completely—a love that is uniquely and individually designed for His children.  God’s love for us is so intense and deep that we are unable to fathom it this side of heaven.  God’s love is a love that completes and fulfills us in a way that nothing or no one on earth can.

Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.  (1 John 3:1 KJV)

Since we live in a sinful, fallen world, it makes sense that the love we experience here would seem rather incomplete.  In heaven, I believe that we will experience such a fullness of God’s love that our earthly bodies and minds simply could not handle it.

God’s love of and for us is an empowering love; it is not a love that controls or manipulates to get its own way; it is a love that sets its object (that is us!) free!  Due to the sinful world we inhabit, at times we experience love that is anything but freeing; in fact, it sometimes controls and manipulates to get its own way.  Sadly, “love” in this world can also be horrifically abusive. 

From http://media.salemwebnetwork.com/cms/CROSSCARDS/16379-love-of-christ-400x200.jpg

Even at that, I believe we can catch glimpses of this love in the world around us, as ell as throughout the Scriptures.  Think about this:  God’s Word (both the Old and New Testaments) is His love letter to us.  How cool is that?!  Trying reading your Bible as God’s love letter to you; see what a difference that makes in how you perceive the words in it.

What do think about the Bible being a love letter from God to you?

From http://ggwo.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/759210960_e5cbd1de5e_b.jpg

In February 2009 (including Valentine’s weekend), I was blessed to go on a Walk to Emmaus retreat—a 72 hour date with the Lord.  It was a wonderful time of spiritual growth, nourishment, and renewal!  Experiencing God’s love and the love of His children was simply amazing!  I simply do not have words to describe that time.  To learn more about Walk to Emmaus, please click here.  What is Walk to Emmaus?

From https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/e9/c9/d7/e9c9d72137d1191e2c79deba54d631a8.jpg

We see God’s love for us in the imagery of a shepherd caring for his sheep—protection, provision, care, and guidance.  His love for us goes far beyond the love we feel for our family and friends or receive from them.

From http://christianrep.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/288_godLovesYouHeart.jpg

God’s love is perfect and complete—it fits us perfectly, it heals us and sets us free from fear (1 John 4:18 KJV) and our bondage to sin.  God’s love is the real thing!

How have you experienced God’s love?  How have you shared it?

From https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc9fRoEL7uMjp-_phaMPYTRr9n4XNGDkxL3UZc8Ce3gd6FTMJwSKsQIG5M1ZCNAMqK_t-BQ5Uc3TGCsNXEVMudmVxgYZKqHmcs0Lr_UD2C1MmvaM3VEjXm16YmZAO34ND_xWdHj_zZmqo/s1600/4-u.jpg

Please join with me in prayer:

Dear God of Love, we long to bask in the healing warmth of Your love.  Please pour into our open hearts Your love, so that we may in turn pour out that love on others.  It is only in and through You that we have any capacity to love.  Fill us with Your Holy Spirit, enabling us to love those who are the most challenging to love—who are the ones who are the most love starved in our midst.  During this season of Lent and preparing for Easter, direct our attention to Your greatest demonstration of love—sending Your precious Son, Jesus Christ, to walk on earth and to die on the cross in our place, and rising again—giving us access to You and to eternal life that is worth living.  In Jesus’ Name we pray.  Amen. 

From My Heart to Yours,

Kim     

Goals

“Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee. Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established. Turn not to the right hand nor to the left: remove thy foot from evil.” 

(Proverbs 4:25-27 KJV)

The first two months of this year are nearly gone. Now is a good time to take a look at how we have started this year. For the first time in many years, I set goals (not resolutions) for myself—they are ambitious and address different areas of my life. They are all good (according to my mentor), positive goals that don’t require the cooperation of others—meaning that I’m responsible for either doing them or not doing them.

The goals encompass reading, writing, creativity (singing/piano playing), ministry (including this blog) and more. They are worded in such a way to allow me to maintain my focus on the Lord, this is important for me and where I desire to go. Many of my goals focus on reading spiritually nurturing books and also writing about what I’m learning (some may eventually end up here).

 It is my heart’s sincere desire that you are setting time aside in your daily schedule to commune with God and that you’re growing in your relationship with Him. God loves you so much and desires nothing more than relationship with you.  He loves you so much, in fact, He’s crazy about you! Keeping your eyes on the goal (prize), will help you stay focused and not get off track. A word of caution: be kind to yourself, realizing that some days/weeks will not be so great; things will go wrong—give yourself the grace you deserve—give yourself the grace you would give to others. Encourage yourself over how far you have come.

It’s when we take our eyes off of our goal that we have an inclination to go off the path that will take us to where we want to be. This is rather like driving a car; we need to keep our eyes on the road ahead of us, not on what is to the sides or behind us. Taking our eyes off the road when driving could send us off into a ditch; much the same could be for our spiritual life. It’s easy to recall times where I have gotten off into a “ditch” spiritually because I have focused on the wrong place/thing. Getting off course is not always easy to correct, in fact, it’s easy (or so it seems) to over-correct in the opposite direction. Thankfully, we have a wonderfully patient Teacher and Guide. Jesus stands by; ever ready to guide us back on the path He has for us.
 

Moreover, this is where supportive relationships (accountability) with fellow brothers and sisters in Christ are so helpful.  Our relationships allow us to lend a helping, supportive hand to a sister or brother who is hurting or struggling; we can also be on the receiving end of the help and support of others.
 

How are you doing with your New Year’s goals? What goals have you set for yourself and what are you doing to work towards them?

Please join with me in prayer:

Dear Lord of All, we desire to set our eyes on the prize—on You, yet sometimes we fail. We get distracted and get far, far off course. Thank you for all those times you have come after us, to rescue us from ourselves and from the attacks that threaten to destroy us.  Lord, grant us the strength and stamina we need to keep on keeping on, so that we’ll be able to reach our goal of being welcomed home by You when we die. In Jesus’ name.  Amen.

From My Heart to Yours,

Kim