Loving Others

There are people we come in contact with who we don't go out of our way to love - maybe it's a boss who's unappreciative, a controlling family member, the person who pushes their opinions, the loner who no one else talks to. We all know someone whose differences make it hard to show them love.

It's not always in us to love certain people. We can't make ourselves feel a love that's not there, but the good news for us is love really isn't a feeling, but rather a choice. Love is an action - it's what we do.

When everyone else is gossiping, we can choose not to engage in it.
When everyone else walks past the homeless person, we can choose to stop.
When everyone else is complaining, we can choose to give thanks.
When everyone else is speaking out of anger, we can choose to speak words of kindness.

True love doesn't blend in with the norm--it stands out. God never intended for us to live a normal life, but rather an extraordinary one that brings glory to His name. When we are loving others, we are ultimately loving Christ.

Jesus says in Matthew 25:40 - "...Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me."
Likewise, He says in verse 45 - "whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me."

Francis Chan writes about this passage in his book "Crazy Love." Here's what he says about it:
      "How would my life change if I actually thought of each person I came into contact with as Christ--the person driving painfully slow in front of me, the checker at the grocery store who seems more interested in chatting than ringing up my items, the member of my own family with whom I can't seem to have a conversation and not get annoyed?
      If we believe that, as Jesus said, the two greatest commandments are to 'love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind' and to 'love your neighbor as yourself,' then this passage has a lot to teach us. Basically, Christ is connecting the command to 'love God' with the command to 'love your neighbor.' By loving the 'least of these,' we are loving God Himself."

Confession

I don't know of anyone who would say they like to fail. I myself tend to be a perfectionist; failure (at anything) has always been a fear of mine. We all know we experience failure occasionally and if we are honest with ourselves, we can probably agree that we don't like admitting our failures. To me, that's what confession has always meant - putting our faults on the table for others to see. A few days ago, I heard someone say that confession should not be seen as a contemptible admission of failure, but rather an honorable act of faith. This was so encouraging for me and it allowed me to see confession in a new light.

There is so much freedom in confessing our sins not only to God, but to others that we trust. Unfortunately, many things keep us from being vulnerable enough to admit our faults. The fear of being rejected, embarrassed, or feeling inferior all get in the way, forcing us to store everything inside. I've realized though, that it's more attractive to acknowledge our humanity and admit to being far from perfect, rather than putting on a face because we are too afraid to show our flaws.

I've been fortunate to be a part of Penn State's Cru community (Campus Crusade for Christ) this past year. The director of Cru has made the following quote several times this year and it has become one of my favorites: "It's better to look bad on the outside and get better on the inside, than to look good on the outside and get worse on the inside." The same idea can be found in God's Word; James 5:16 says "Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective."

When we focus on praying for others, we don't even think about judging them. When we are truly caring for someone instead of rejecting them based on their faults, we build our trust and deepen our relationship with that person.

Christ is the greatest example for us to follow - He extends His mercy to us because He loves us. When we confess our sins to Him, he never rejects us, but pours his love and grace onto us despite our failures. God is good even when we are not. The first phrase of lyrics to the song "Forever Reign" by Hillsong is this: "You are good, You are good, when there's nothing good in me." When we begin to feel discouraged by our sins, we can remember the truth in those words.

God's Will

If you are anything like me, you probably find comfort in knowing what lies ahead. I tend to be so much of a planner that I will have a daily to-do list and agenda as well as one for the upcoming week and month. I like to know what's coming up so that I can plan my schedule accordingly. This works well for me sometimes, but certainly not always. I always thought I was a patient person; but when my schedule falls apart, my plans change, or I don't complete all the tasks I want to, I can easily become frustrated and disappointed.

For so long, it didn't occur to me to ask myself whether or not my plans for myself were aligned with God's plans for me. I've been reminded over the past few months that when my plans fall through, God has something else in mind for me. Who am I to cling so tightly to my "future" when I am not even guaranteed another day on earth?

James 4:13-15: "Now listen, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money. Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, 'If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that.'" 

It's difficult sometimes to give up our own will and follow God's will for us. But sometimes what's even harder is finding what God's will for us actually is. I think the answer is much more simple than we may think. We are always looking for answers, but God has already communicated much of His will for us through His Word. For example.. In Matthew 22: 37-39, Jesus says: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: love your neighbor as yourself."

I believe God gives us free will to make our own decisions; His will for us is simply to glorify Him in whatever we do; to love Him, love others, and abide by His Word. I heard a pastor say once that "when your energy is spent knowing God, it's impossible to miss His will." It was so encouraging to think that the more we know God and obey Him, the more He will reveal to us. It's simple! What's not so simple is when we realize that our current way of life is not in line with God's will for us. We might have to give up a lot - relationships, jobs, habits - or anything else that might be keeping us from living as we are called to. To figure out if we are following God's will for us, we can simply ask ourselves "Am I glorifying God with what I am doing?"

Humility

Psalm149:4 - For the Lord takes delight in his people; he crowns the humble with victory.

“…He crowns the humble with victory…” This verse alone shows how highly God views humility. This topic is mentioned all over God’s Word, but it’s an area that I think most of us struggle with at some point. In order to humble ourselves, it's important to know what humility really means.

Humility requires an understanding that we are sinners, undeserving of God’s grace. But it’s important to know that being humble doesn’t mean seeing ourselves as worthless or inadequate. We cannot be prideful, but also should not miss the fact that we have worth and value. Being humble means not seeing ourselves as more (or less) than what we are. Rather, it’s seeing ourselves as God sees us – Redeemed!

When we allow pride to get in the way, we are hindering our ability to be thankful for the blessings God has given us. Pride leads us to believe that we are actually something great – we compare ourselves to others and build ourselves up in our minds. We think that we did something right to deserve what we have, and we forget that if it weren’t for Christ’s sacrifice, we wouldn’t even have life, let alone anything else! Pride builds a barrier between us and God and even blinds us to the needs of those around us. 

Humility, on the other hand, opens our eyes and softens our hearts. By knowing the depths of our sin and then realizing how much God loves us anyway, we can’t help but be humbled. Rather than judging those around us and comparing ourselves to them, we begin to show them love in the same way God shows it to us. God extends his grace to all of us; the way we live should be a reflection of the grace and mercy He freely gave to us. There is no greater example of a humble man that Christ Himself: “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” – Mark 10:45

When we live our lives in humility, we’re not selfishly seeking to receive and be served, but rather to serve and give to others. When our lives are focused on giving, God blesses us and gives us even more to be thankful for. As a result, we become more fulfilled, more joyful, and gain a sense of true purpose. 

Joy

Until a few months ago, I never thought all that much about the concept of joy. To me, it was simple-it meant being happy. I've been challenged to think of joy in a completely different way and have learned that being joyful is comprised of so much more than our day-to-day happiness. It's easy to be happy when things are going right, when life is good and there doesn't seem to be a single "cloud in the sky." But when we're faced with trials, it's our natural tendency to worry, complain, analyze, and stress about our difficulties. Our immediate reaction is certainly not to rejoice, be thankful, and see the problems we experience as blessings. One of my favorite verses dealing with this is Romans 5:3-4, that says we are to "glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverane; perseverance, character; and character, hope." It's amazing to think that even in our sufferings, we can give glory to God, allowing Him to use those struggles to refine us and draw us closer to Him.

1 Peter 5:6-7 says: "Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that He may life you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you."

How amazing is it that God loves us so much that he wants to rid us of our anxieties so that He can take care of us? He loves us more than we can imagine, so He offers Himself to us in place of the anxiety and worry that fills our hearts. He takes all of it away and gives us hope instead. Somehow, it's still so easy to block him out and I think one reason is because giving our struggles to God means giving up control of our life and placing it in His hands. But when we do this, we see Him work in our lives in ways we couldn't have imagined and begin to experience true joy-a lasting contentment that comes from Christ alone.