Skip to main content

“It’s nice to be included. You aren’t always.”

A thought by Max Lucado (2012-01-02) from his book, He Chose the Nails  (p. 91). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)

Have you ever had the problem of not being included?  Maybe it was in sports, maybe it was the smartest in the class or the best looking group? You felt left out.  And that is not fun.

Max says, “Universities exclude you if you aren’t smart enough. Businesses exclude you if you aren’t qualified enough, and, sadly, some churches exclude you if you aren’t good enough.”

Again, that is not fun.

Max goes on, “But though they may exclude you, Christ includes you. When asked to describe the width of his love, he stretched one hand to the right and the other to the left and had them nailed in that position so you would know he died loving you.”

Max then says, “But isn’t there a limit? Surely there hast to be an end to this love. You’d think so, wouldn’t you? But David the adulterer never found it. Paul the murderer never found it. Peter the liar never found it. When it came to life, they hit bottom. But when it came to God’s love, they never did.”

Look at this verse from the Bible, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son” (John 3: 16 NLT).

Max says, “Aren’t you glad the verse does not read: ‘For God so loved the rich...’? Or ‘For God so loved the famous...’? Or ‘For God so loved the thin...? It doesn’t. Nor does it state, ‘For God so loved the Europeans or Africans...’ ‘the sober or successful...’ ‘the young or the old...’

“No, when we read John 3: 16, we simply (and happily) read, ‘For God so loved the world.’ How wide is God’s love? Wide enough for the whole world. Are you included in the world? Then you are included in God’s love. It’s nice to be included. You aren’t always.”


Did you know that you are included in God's love?
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

“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...
Post a Comment
Read more

“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...
Post a Comment
Read more

“Sometimes we think we’re stuck simply because things are hard.”

A thought by Matt Perman, from his book, How to Get Unstuck (p. 52). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.  (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the That is a possible trap for many, isn’t it? Matt says, “But if you’re continuing to make progress and aren’t experiencing huge snags, you’re not stuck. Rather, you’re in a dip. “A dip is a temporary hard slog that you will get through if you keep pushing and don’t give up. And pushing through the hard slog is actually the fastest route to the destination. In these cases, you will be especially tempted to bail. Be discerning and able to identify that you’re in a legitimate dip and you’re not a failure.” Matt says another trap to be careful of, “Some people are stuck and don’t know it.” He goes on, “Everything can be going your way, going smoothly, and going quickly. Everything feels and seems wonderful. Yet... you are still headed toward a dead end, a form of getting stuck, if you are leaving God out of t...
Post a Comment
Read more