“Our love tends to be reactive, but God’s love is proactive.”

A thought by Mark Batterson, (2015-10-06) from his book, If: Trading Your If Only Regrets for God's What If Possibilities (Kindle Location 3657). Baker Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. (Click on the title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)

For too many of us we say, “I’ll love you if...” you meet a certain condition. Or “If you really love me you will do this…” Or, "You don't really love me because..."

But God’s love is not like that. Marks says, “His love is unconditional. There is nothing you can do to make God love you more or less because He already loves you perfectly, eternally. Even when we don’t reciprocate His love, it doesn’t deter, deflect, or diminish His love. It accentuates it.”

There is a verse over in Romans 5:8 in the New Testament that says, “While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” That is true love.

Mark says, “It’s easy to love someone when they’re at their best. When they’re at their worst? Not so much. But that’s the test of true love. Our love tends to be reactive, but God’s love is proactive. It doesn’t reciprocate; it procreates. He loves us when we least expect it and least deserve it. And even when we’re at our worst, He’s at His best.”

Oh we need that kind of love in the world in which we live, don't we?

Mark continues, “The closest I can come to understanding the love of the heavenly Father is thinking about it as an earthly parent. Being a parent to our three children has taught me more about God’s love than three graduate degrees in theology. Nothing compares. Yet no matter how high and wide and deep and long our love for our children is, it’s still measured in years. God’s love is forever and a day!”

Are you experiencing and expressing His love today?

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“There’s a big difference between building a castle and building a kingdom.”

A thought by Bob Goff from his book, Everybody, Always: Becoming Love in a World Full of Setbacks and Difficult People ( p. 41). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) Have you ever built a sand castle or maybe a Lego castle? Have you? Bob says, “We actually build castles all the time, out of our jobs and our families and the things we’ve purchased. Sometimes we even make them out of each other. Some of these castles are impressive too. Lots of people come to admire what we’ve built over the course of our lives and tell us what great castles we have. But Jesus told His friends we weren’t supposed to spend our lives building castles. He said He wanted us to build a kingdom, and there’s a big difference between building a castle and building a kingdom.” Bob goes on, “You see, castles have moats to keep creepy people out, but kingdoms have bridges to let everyone in. Castles have dungeons for people who ha...

“When you understand that life is a test, you realize that nothing is insignificant in your life.”

A thought by Rick Warren, (2012-10-23) from his book, The Purpose Driven Life: What on Earth Am I Here For? (Purpose Driven Life, The) (p. 57). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. To realize that from God’s perspective life is a test goes a long way in determining how you handle your life. It is important to see that in testing your character is both developed and revealed. Rick goes on to say that “even the smallest incident has significance for your character development. Every day is an important day, and every second is a growth opportunity to deepen your character, to demonstrate love, or to depend on God.” So there is a God purpose behind each situation in your life. Even the bad ones are there to strengthen you and develop you. You see those bad situations are really good ones because they are there for your good. I start each day with a reminder that God is good. Not every situation that is going to come in my day is good but because G...

“What areas of my personality, background, and physical appearance am I struggling to accept?”

A thought by Rick Warren, (2012-10-23) from his book, The Purpose Driven Life: What on Earth Am I Here For? (Purpose Driven Life, The) (p. 35). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. Rick posed this question at the end of his chapter, You Are Not an Accident. In this chapter he deals with the fact that God created you the way you are with a purpose. In other words you are not an accident. I am also reading the Apostle John’s view of Jesus and what He said and did while He was here on earth. In the beginning of Chapter 9 there is a story about a blind man. And the disciples who were with Him asked Him a good question, “Who sinned, this man or his parents that he was born blind? ” Have you ever asked the same thing about something in you that you don’t like? Like that characteristic is a curse or something. Society has set a standard that is not a standard of God. Remember, He created you and you are not an accident. Je...

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