by David Brenneman
"There is nothing in all creation that will ever be able to separate us from the love of God which is ours through Christ Jesus our Lord."
ROMANS 8:39 GNT
Consider the profound, personal nature of how the Lord cares for you. God loves you. The most magnificent person in the
universe delights in you. The Godhead-Father, Son, and Holy Spirit-cherishes you. Immeasurably and eternally, the Sovereign
of the universe has set His affection on you. You are the apple apple of His eye, the crown of His creation.
God loves you. This is not mere sentiment. His infinite goodness is directed to you in myriad ways- through how He created, saved, indwells, guides, and protects you. He listens to your petitions, gives you new mercies every morning, sustains you each day, and watches over you every night. And nothing in all creation can stop Him.
God loves you, He cares for you uniquely as an individual. No one knows you like He does, He knows your dreams, desires, and potential and wants to see you succeed. He calls you by name and
speaks to you through His Word in the most intimate way.
"God loves me'" Begin and end each day with this affirmation Rehearse it in your soul, And may you come to know in the most personal way how true it is.
Jesus, keep me mindful of Your love always. Amen
- Trusting God with Today, Dr. Charles Stanley
Today's comes from the day after the post where Dr. Stanley spoke of getting into the habit of saying to ourselves that God loves_________. Where that line is our own name.
It can't be seen in this that you just read but in each segment a different word is highlighted in the beginning of the sentence where it says "God loves you". The first the word God is highlighted. The second, the word loves is highlighted. The next to last the word you is highlighted.
We cannot go through life without making this walk with Jesus personal. You read in Ezekiel 18-19 where people came to Ezekiel to inquire of the Lord and the Lord told them He would NOT be inquired of by them...and He tells them why.
In Revelation to the letters to the Churches there are even churches who would go down the same kind of path as the errant people of Israel.
They forgot their first love. They went off to do their own thing rather than live a life in harmony with the Savior. Having the appearance but not the reality.
We too must take our walk with Jesus personally. In every respect.
We must also really really stop to consider what all we have laid claim to enjoying in this life if those things in fully spiritual reality have taken our eyes off of Jesus.
The very thought that you could do things, run after things, that would take your eyes off Jesus should give you pause to consider the possibility.
While our lives are hidden in Christ in God, we still ought to be sure to be walking in a manner worthy of our calling.
Do you make exceptions? "Oh i didn't mean that...it was just a game!". "Oh that's not what it looks like!" "I wasn't serious!" We can make exceptions to our life in Christ to accomodate what the world wants us to love.
Consider that thought very carefully.
What in this world does the world want you to love that you are going after? Do you not remember the words in the New Testament?
James 4 verse 4 says "You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility towards God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.".
Our greatest temptation is to do or add something to our lives for the sake of making our life less of a threat to the world. We probably know of the words of Jesus saying that those who wish to live Godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. If we make ourselves look less of a threat then we won't be as persecuted. Doesn't work that way.
Satan and his minions know who belongs to God in Christ Jesus.
It's on each of us to live lives that are fully personal with our Savior.
We must make life personal. We begin by remembering that other post by Dr. Stanley where he struggled for years until he began repeating to himself that God loves Charles Stanley several times a day.
First he acknowledged that he was struggling as a Believer. Then he was ready to be reminded of the second part...that God loves him.
I can fully relate to what Dr. Stanley said in the first post that you hopefully have read where God reminded him that God loved him.
Even here in this post I am reminded to make sure that my relationship with Jesus is personal.
Ironically I knew an owner of a company who, while claiming to be a Christian, took great pains to separate his relationship with Jesus from his business. He at one time rebuked me because I was concerned and was offering myself to pray with him should he so desire. Jesus sees no separation and I don't either....but he did.
Jesus wants to be just as much a part of your personal life outside of work as He is while you are at work.
We read no where in the 4 Gospels of where the Disciples lived separate lives. Peter was married but stayed with Jesus throughout His ministry to follow Jesus. Undoubtedly there might have been other disciples who were married and in relationships too. There was no separation no time off days when they weren't with Jesus.
You too must not separate Jesus from other things you try to live in your life. You should likewise never introduce new worldly thoughts, ideas or beliefs, into your relationship with Jesus.
Jesus's admonition is that if anything is causing you to stumble get rid of it out of your life...do NOT embrace it, excuse it, or hang onto it.
Make your life in Christ THAT personal. King David made his relationship with the Lord THAT personal. King Solomon started off with a life that was THAT personal. We saw what happened when he compromised. We WILL fall down into a pit if we compromise.
In John 2:15 we read "do not love the world nor the things in the world. if anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the wrold, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. The world is passing away and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God contineues to live forever." Note that this goes right into Jesus mentioning the allure the draw to the words of the coming AntiChrist.
Read that passage in John 2 again.
Jesus made no exceptions. This was NOT a parable made to hide it's meaning from one group of people while being understood by others. This was plainly taught for all to understand.
This teaching takes time to embrace. I know of people who are Christian's who really DO love this or that in this world. They speak so warmly of these things. I know of others that I can testify to who will tell you they learned in incredibly painful ways what God did to dissolve their love of something in this world.
If you're making your walk with Jesus a right and true relationship...then you must take up your own cross to follow Jesus.
As the great hymn says "...the world behind me...the cross before me...the world behind me...the cross before me...the world behind me...the cross before me...no turning back...no turning back..."
Is your relationship with Jesus honestly personal? Have you put up walls to separate areas from your walk with Jesus from other parts of your life? Do you love something or someone in this world when you're not to do that?
In closing...remember what Jesus told the scribe: "Then a scribe came and said to Him, "Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go." And Jesus said to him, "The foxes have holes and the birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head." And another of the disciples said to Him, "Lord, allow me first to go and bury my father." But Jesus said to him, "Follow Me, and let the dead bury their own dead." - Matthew 8:19-22.
And likewise Joshua 24:14-15 "Now, therefore, fear the Lord and serve Him in sincerity and truth; and do away with the gods which your fathers served beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. But if it is disagreeable in your sight to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves today whom you will serve: whether the gods which your fathers served, which were beyond the Euphrates River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are now living, but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord."
Make your life in Christ THAT personal. God loves you. GOD loves you. God LOVES you. God loves YOU.
All NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission.
New American Standard Bible
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