Category: Love

How to Abound in Life and Godliness

What does abound in life and godliness mean to you? How do we live in abundance of life? To be plentiful in life and godliness comes through God’s grace and peace. Being plentiful is not always about money, fame or status. Money is a good thing we need money to buy food and shelter. To me being plentiful in life is walking, living and abiding in the grace and peace of God. I know when I live in this manner I am led by the Spirit of God and He supplies what I need for all my life situations and the grace and peace to wait, lean and surrender in them. This is a daily provision not a one-time occurrence. Jesus gave us abundant life.

How do we walk in His grace and peace? Through surrendering our control of situations. Through God’s grace which is His empowerment to enable you to do what you need to do. His grace and peace are supplied as you surrender to him and abide in Him plus, He increases it as you ask for it.

God’s word tells us In 2 Peter 1:2-4 “Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, 3)as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, 4)by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.”

Through these promises we are given everything needed to live in and by his divine nature, that lives in us through Christ Jesus. We are joint heirs with him. This abundant life is not about prospering financially but does not seclude it either. It is spiritually, soul (mind, will, and emotions) and physically. God has supplied grace for us and will give us more grace as we need it to do what he has called us to do.

Recently, I taught on how to apply 2 Peter 1:5-8, our pastor ends his message weekly with ‘let’s do the Bible’ and this was the passage, 2 Peter 1: 5-8 says, “But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, to brotherly kindness love, For if these are yours and abound, you will neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

We need His grace and help. We are overcomers in Christ Jesus, but you must be willing to walk and live it out! Walking out the Word of God produces growth.

We need to be willing and must want to grow and see our need for it. So, with all diligence we are to add to our faith…

First, we are to add to our faith virtue. Virtue means “behavior showing high moral standards” it also means moral excellence, strength and courage. How do we apply add moral excellence in our lives? We can apply this through surrender to the Spirits chastisement, leading, reproving. Being thankful when corrected by Him because you are growing and learning His ways.

Moral excellence is a daily walk of listening to the Holy Spirit’s leading so that if you were to go in a direction that is not holy, He will warn you. It is when we don’t listen to the Spirits leading that we usually get ourselves into compromising situations.

Moral excellence starts in the heart and its fruit shows up as you walk it out. Outward appearance is not moral excellence although modesty will be seen in our appearance when we live in moral excellence according to God’s word.

Second, add to our virtue knowledge. Knowledge means “an understating of facts, information and skills acquired by a person through experience or education, the theoretical or practical understand of a subject.”  I believe we apply adding knowledge by being teachable. We can always keep learning. As we learn the word of God through reading and studying it ask The Holy Spirit to open your understanding. Ask Him to teach you if you seek knowledge, you will find it. Learning something new is good for our brains.

Third, add to knowledge self-control. What does self-control mean? It means “The ability to control oneself, one’s emotions and desires or the expression of them in one’s behavior, especially in difficult situations.” (self-discipline)

It is interesting that self-control is the fruit of the Spirit. Therefore, if you are a child of God, you have self-control. We apply this in our lives by yielding to God the Holy Spirit. Giving Him the right of way to lead you instead of allowing your emotions to run wild. I choose to speak God’s word out loud when I’m facing situations I don’t like or understand. Speaking God’s word out loud helps us to hear it, believe it, and receive His help.

Fourth, add to self-control perseverance. What does perseverance mean?  Perseverance means “persistence in doing something, despite difficulty or delay in achieving success.” “Continued effort to do or achieve something despite difficulties, failures or opposition: steadfastness.”

Tell yourself you can finish, encourage yourself you can do it. By the grace of God, we can finish what we started. Do not allow yourself permission to quit. Speak God’s word to your spirit soul and body. Anyone who has carried out any challenging task understands the struggle you are facing but they did not give up and neither will you! You are becoming an overcomer!

Fifth, add to perseverance godliness. Godliness means, “The quality or practice conforming to the laws and wishes of God.” Is this in outward behavior only? No, it is inward and then comes outward in our behavior. God deals with the heart motives, and He shows us where we are at, which is conviction so that we can repent and change.

Therefore, verse three is so important it says, “As His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness.” It is wisdom to live in godliness, which is reflecting the nature of the Kingdom of God during everyday life. When we live in godliness Christ Jesus nature is reflected in our actions and decisions.

How do we apply this? By being willing to let God search your heart. Then be sensitive to the Holy Spirit’s leading. Being sensitive to God means listening to God the Holy Spirit He will quicken His word in you and then follow His peace. This affects how you live and interact with others in the world around you, with your families and in the body of Christ.

Sixth add to your godliness brotherly kindness. What is brotherly kindness and who is your brother? Brotherly kindness means the love of brothers “kind affection for one another.” “Kindness is the quality of being friendly, generous and considerate.” All humans are our neighbors…

We apply this by humbling ourselves to the leading of God putting others first. Who is our brother? I believe it is our families, church families and neighbor. Jesus put it best as to who our neighbor is. Read Luke 10: 25-37 the parable of the Good Samaritan. Following the Master’s example is best.

And finally add to brotherly kindness love. I Corinthians 13: 4-8 says, “love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil, does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices I the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails.”

How do we apply this to our lives? By asking God to show us where we are at in our love walk and asking for the grace to love with His love for one another, for family, and neighbors.

I love that God supplies us with the ability to add to our faith as we surrender to His will and ways.

What Are The Three ABCs of Marriage?

The ABCs of marriage suggests to me what is 123 of sequence. What makes a marriage work well? How does love really work in marriage? What constitutes a good marriage to you? Sometimes people enter marriage through preconceived ideas and then when their idea of love will not go the way they think or feel it should they get disillusioned. We can set ourselves up for success or failure in relationships through presuppositions. Learning basic relational tools is so important for marriage. I think couples need premarital or post marital counsel. This is important because communication is essential to a healthy relationship.  

The A of ABCs in marriage is for Attraction. When people fall in love it first starts with attraction, but attraction alone will not carry a marriage. Attraction is something you do not choose but you sense, but you do not have to act on it. If the character of the individual is not pure walk away. I think when we sense attraction it is because we like the look, style or personality of the person etc. but that is not love it is just attraction.

When people put too much emphasis on attraction as if it is love and then when they no longer feel attracted, they think ‘they fell out of love.’ Real love is not a feeling it is a choice with a commitment. There is no such thing as falling out of love. The truth is we choose to not continue. When trust is broken, and meaningful communication is absent then intimacy is neglected, the individual no longer wants to continue.

Please do not miss understand there are reasons for divorce such as adultery or abuses of all forms and these are not what I am writing about today. Unfortunately, domestic violence is a reality and should not be, but it is. I always add this because if you are reading this blog and being abused reach out to a shelter in your area. My heart goes out to anyone who has been or is being abused in any form. The mental, emotional, and physical aspects of abuse are very real and painful.

The B of ABCs stands for ‘becoming best friends.’ I personally think a couple can withstand the ups and downs of life when God is first in their life, and they have developed a strong friendship. Think of what a good friend is to you and become a good friend to your spouse. A good friend wants what’s best for you and looks to support in your talents. Gets excited with you in new challenges. Spends time with you but not exclusively. A good friend does not try to keep you away from others. A good friend does not get jealous of you having friends. Anytime we get controlled over our relationships we tend to push the other person away. Healthy relationships give the other person freedom to have friends and family time without negative feelings. Couples can be great friends to each other. Marriage isn’t a competition it is a journey together.

The C in the ABCs of marriage is a Covenant relationship. A covenant relationship is a physical, spiritual commitment to each other in the presence of God and witnesses. In a marriage the covenant relationship is between a man, woman and God as seen in the scripture. When Christ is first in the couple’s life, they understand they are not alone in life or within their marriage. The Bible tells us that marriage is a covenant relationship. In Genesis 2:18 “And the LORD God said, “it is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him.”

Genesis 2:21-24 “And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh in its place. 22 then the rib which the LORD God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man. 23 And Adam said: This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; She shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. 24 Therefore, a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall be one flesh.”

In this passage of scripture, a man and women are joined together as one flesh. The marriage covenant is blessed and special. It is so important for the couple to protect their marriage. A few ways in protecting your marriage are to be aware of the time stealers or other people’s assumptions of your time. While raising your children remember to give your relationship time to be alone. Learn to work for the good of the marriage not self-gratification.

In the ABCs of marriage is a progression of the relationship. The couple starts their journey with attraction but moves forward in becoming best friends and then committing to one another in marriage. Enjoy your journey together!

 I saw this picture on Facebook, it reminds us of the little things in marriage do matter.

The Three C’s of Marriage

Good marriages don’t just happen the individuals work together to make the relationship good. A good marriage is a growing and changing entity. Marriages thrive when we surrender to walking in love, forgiveness and submission to one another. We do this by surrendering our pride, selfishness, and control.

The word submission alone makes individuals nervous due to the extremes people have used with this word. An abusive person will use this word to control and manipulate their spouse. But that’s not how God intended these passages to work.

I look at this word as a mutual surrendering of individuals abilities, strengths and weaknesses. My husband and I have different strengths and weaknesses and we willingly lean on each other in our strengths and weaknesses. Marriage is not a competition it is a mutual covenant of commitment, care and correction. Let’s look at the three C’s of marriage.

The first C of marriage is commitment. Because marriage is covenant relationship it must be entered into with a wholehearted commitment. A covenant is an agreement between two parties. But marriage is also a spiritual covenant between the man, woman and God. God created marriage, it’s a living entity. When a couple puts their marriage in God’s hand and Christ is the center of that marriage their union will be blessed. In premarital counseling I like to teach couples that marriage is a priority. You cannot sustain a marriage and live just for yourself.

The second C of marriage is care/caring. When we care we think of what the other person needs. We express care in many ways with understanding, compassion, and interest. Kindness goes along way in a relationship. Putting someone else’s need instead of your own needs is essential in a healthy vibrant relationship. There is a give and take in a good marriage. Showing thankfulness is also a way of caring. Good manners are a better way to talk to your spouse, please and thank you go a long way. It is a form of respect toward each other.   

The third C of marriage is correction. Yes, correction. When we walk in humility, we can see we are not always right. Correction for me means I’m willing to change or correct the imperfections, weaknesses or faults that I need changing. Jesus said, “get the plank out of your own eye first.” Unfortunately, when we get focused on our spouses’ faults, we lose sight of our own and then we start to compare their faults to our righteousness. But ‘our own righteousness is as fifthly rags’ according to the bible so don’t compare your works to your spouses.

Remember marriage is not a competition nor is it a race. It’s a lifelong journey so enjoy the journey with your spouse.

Why Forgiveness is a key?

Forgiveness

Why don’t we forgive? What is the benefit of forgiveness? In my blog post ‘the three things about Mercy” I wrote on forgiveness being an aspect of mercy. As I was in prayer, I sensed writing on forgiveness again. I think we need to go deeper in our understanding of forgiveness.

Forgiveness is not agreement with the offender. Forgiveness does not say it was ok to hurt me. But what it does do is release you from the hurt of the offense, pain or suffering emotionally and mentally. When we stay in the offense in our thoughts we are captured by the painful memories, and we tend to replay them repeatedly. This just causes more pain daily. You could call it beating yourself up with mental replays of events concerning the offense, hurt and pain. Eventually it will be more difficult to stop replaying the hurt unless you repress it which opens the door to more inner problems tormenting you.

I know that forgiveness can be difficult for traumatic events, rejections and suffering. But forgiveness is a key that opens the door to freedom in your mind and body. The key to forgiveness must be turned to release you from the mental anguish. When we hold onto people that have hurt us and we pretend it did not hurt it just plays revolving thoughts of the hurt in our minds.

But forgiveness is still a key of choice. We choose to forgive when we willingly process the hurt and ask God to heal our the mind and heart. Forgiveness is the blessing that releases you from the suffering and thoughts of turmoil. Real or imagined pain and hurt must be let go of to move on and be healed.

This does not imply you have to stay and be abused or violated. In no way does forgiveness mean any person has the right to abuse, torture or hurt another person. It simply means the mental aspect of it which lingers after traumatic events can be healed. It starts with dealing with the trauma and getting the pain out so that you can process it, forgive and be free.

Today is the day to choose to forgive and be free. Should I forgive? The Rejection Connection

What are three things about Mercy?

“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.”

What does it mean to be merciful? Why should we be merciful? How can we extend mercy to others? Have you ever been in a situation where you could either give mercy or revenge? Obviously, revenge is never a clever idea, because the Bible says, “vengeance is the Lords” not ours.

The Oxford Dictionary says mercy means, “compassion or forgiveness shown toward someone whom it is within one’s power to punish or harm.”

Although these definitions are long it is important to understand what mercy is. The Revell Concise Bible Dictionary states, “Mercy, merciful “A compassionate response that moves a person to one who is helpless and in need.” “In the OT 1) a feeling of compassion, normally translates as ‘love’, 2) the active help, motivated by love, that is offered to a person in need, often rendered ‘to be gracious or ‘to show mercy.’ “The NT 3) Gk, eleos, originally the deep emotion of concern aroused by suffering, which in the NT implies the giving of active help. The biblical use of eleos, portrays God as one who is deeply moved by human suffering and who has chosen to come to our aid despite the sin that makes us his enemies.”

So, with these definition’s the first thing we’re seeing is, mercy is an action in motion to meet someone else’s need. The need for mercy may be hands on physical help or a verbal response of love and concern. Mercy goes outside of yourself towards another.  When we reach out to help another it is for their betterment. Mercy wants to help another. The motivation is to ease the suffering.

The second thing we’re seeing about mercy is, sometimes it also an act of forgiveness. When someone offends, hurts or despitefully uses us our natural man wants to defend ourselves or get even. But mercy extends forgiveness to the person. When we are willing to forgive it is a process we go through. Saying I forgive you can be difficult when it is a traumatic event, but the forgiveness releases you from the event your mind wants to hold onto.

Forgiveness is a choice and God will walk through the process with you. Being merciful doesn’t mean you stay in harm’s way, but it does mean your releasing yourself from the hurt and pain through forgiveness. We choose to forgive, process the hurt and let God bring in the healing for it.

The third thing we could learn about mercy is God is merciful. He extends help to those who are in need. He is “gracious, longsuffering and abounding in goodness and truth.” God loves us so much sent His only begotten son Jesus to die for our sins and so his sacrifice would purchase redemption for us. Even though we deserved the penalty for our sin, His mercy was extended to us through Christ Jesus. His forgiveness of our sins is because of His mercy on mankind. His compassion, longsuffering and goodness can be seen in His love towards us.

Therefore, mercy is a powerful action of love.

What do you base your Love on?

What is love? Why is love so important? Where does it come from? Is it found in a feeling, thought or action? Or are all three of these involved in love? Does love include your mind, will and emotions? These are a few questions I would like to look at and think about.

First what is love? The Dictionary states, noun 1) “An intense feeling of deep affection. 2) A great interest and pleasure in something. Such as love for football.”

The Urban Dictionary defines love as “The act of caring and giving to someone else. Having someone’s best interest and well being as a priority in your life. To truly love is a very selfless act.” These definitions show us a few things that describe love according to the Dictionary.

Any time I do premarital counseling I like to ask couples why do you love each other; this question causes thoughts and expression so that each one can hear why each other loves them. Just saying I love you is not enough; love is always an expression of action. In healthy relationships love is selfless, it is always moving and growing. Love is stable, reliable, security, with meaningful communication and affection.

Relationships that embrace the differences in each other develop into healthy friendships. Love accepts the differences in others. For example, my husband is a drummer he played drums all his life. I do not have rhythm I struggle to clap in time. But my strengths are in other areas I love to sing. These differences do not hinder us because we embrace our differences, and we are not trying to make each other be like our selves. I think being able to laugh at yourself helps keep balance in love too. Laughter does the heart good.

Parental love also expresses to the child stability, consistency, security, communication, acceptance, affirmations, affection, boundaries and consequences. Healthy love has boundaries it also says I am sorry when wrong or I have hurt someone or reacted in a wrong way. Parental love teaches children how to love.

The Word of God describes love in 1 Corinthians 13: 4-8 “Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; 5-does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; 6-does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; 7-bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 8-Love never fails.” This description of love is actions, thoughts and words. This is the kind of love we are to walk and live in daily.

God loved us so much He sent His only begotten son to die for us so that we could live eternally with Him. In John 3:16 it tells us of Gods sacrificial love. Jesus laid down His own life for us, His love for us endured suffering, sorrow and death by taking our place, to buy forgiveness of sin for us. God showed His love through His Son Christ Jesus. Love expresses itself in sacrifice at times.

Love is a decision so your will is involved in love. Love is not just a feeling it is a choice. You can choose to walk and live love every moment. Let’s choose to love today.

Today is a beautiful day!

Today is a crisp sunny spring day. Flowers are starting to bloom, and the hope of spring has arrived. Over two thousand years ago it wasn’t a beautiful day our Savior was tortured and beaten for us. Although mankind didn’t know it was for us, they felt he was a threat to their way of religion. It’s sad to think the ones He loved couldn’t see Him, didn’t know Him or recognize who He was.

I wonder how many people today hear of Him and still don’t recognize He died for them. It’s the day we call Good Friday, although His death and torture purchased forgiveness for us this is really a black Friday. Such darkness covered the earth. The heavens went silent as He was dying on the cross. No one knew the Fathers plan not the angels nor Satan. But Jesus and The Father knew he would die and in three days rise from the dead, a conquering King. The religious leaders of that day feared Him, so they had Him killed. They didn’t know It was the plan to die for all of us.

When you think about today remember Jesus died for you. Today is a good Friday because the Lord of All is alive and loves you. How do I know? Because I called out to Christ Jesus Feb 18th, 1991 and He me delivered me from drugs and cigarettes He set me free and filled me with His Spirit.  I answered the call to teach His Word and to follow Him. I’ve never looked backed I’ve made mistakes and He’s forgiven them. But He has never left me, and He won’t leave you either.

This Good Friday call on the Lord He will save, help and free you on this momentous day.    

Are You Quieted by His Love?

Let’s take a look at God’s love in more detail. I thought the month about love would be a precious time to write about Gods love. There is so numerous distinct aspects to His love because, who can comprehend the unfathomable riches of God’s love?  The one lovely aspect of God Almighty is that He opens our understanding to His love. He did this by sending His only begotten Son Jesus to show us His love. If you want to know The Father, you will need to learn from the Son. He is the exact representation of the Father the bible says. By searching and understanding the many qualities of God’s love it helps you to grow, stand, and trust His love for you.

God’s love never fails, is eternal and everlasting.  Deuteronomy 7:9 “Therefore know that the LORD your God, He is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments;” His love is faithful He keeps his love and mercy for your generations beyond you it is a promise.  I’m a product of my grandmother’s prayers. I thank God for their love and their faithfulness to Him.

Isaiah 54:10 “For the mountains shall depart and the hills be removed, But My kindness shall not depart from you, nor shall My covenant of peace be removed.” Says the LORD, who has mercy on you.” Mercy=His love and so does kindness. Things will be gone as well as landscapes change but not God’s love for you it is unchanging and enduring.

Psalm 136:26 “Oh, give thanks to the God of heaven! For His mercy endures forever.” This is enduring love. Mercy equals love.

Psalm 86:15 “But You, O Lord, are a God full of compassion, and gracious, Longsuffering and abundant in mercy and truth.” God is full of compassion, graciousness and longsuffering with abundant mercy and truth. There is no limit in His love for you.

 I John 4:16 “And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him.”  This passage needs to be referenced to the previous passage. 1 John 4:15 “Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God.” Gods love is abiding love it is continual flowing enduring love. God doesn’t just have love He is love.

John 15:9-13 “As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love. 10) If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.” Verse 13 Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.” Jesus laid down his life for his friends and for all of mankind.  His love is not only sacrificial love it is abiding love. It remains steadfast with you.

Romans 5: 8 “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ dies for us.” This shows us His love is demonstrative in that he displays his love with actions and sacrifice.

1 John 3:16 “By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.”  God doesn’t just speak he creates His word with actions.

1 John 3:1 “Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God.” What manner of love the Father bestowed on us is His sacrificial love to send His son to die for us, so that we could be sons and daughters.

Romans 8:37-39 As you read this passage of scripture you will see nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus.  

Ephesians 2:4 “But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved),” His love is great love. He is rich in mercy and loved us before we even knew Him.

 Are you quieted in His love? Zephaniah 3:17 “The LORD your God in your midst, The Mighty One will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you with His Love.” I believe this scripture tells us of God causing you to rest and be still in his love for you. When you’re resting in His love you no longer have to figure it out, you’re trusting in His care and love to guide and guard you. This helps to release anxiety about your situations. It builds a trust in Him and His love for you.

If you are questioning all your situations due to anxiety or fear of the unknown or unlike of what is happening, you can rest in God’s love for you. Allow His love for you to quiet your anxiousness and to quiet your fear of… As His child he promises to bring you through every situation you can trust Him in the trials of life.

Search out passages on His love and meditate on those aspects to help you grow in your faith in God. He genuinely cares for you. Lean on and depend on His love for you it will quiet your heart and mind.

What is conditional and unconditional love?

Since I have been writing about love this month, I thought a more detailed description of conditional and unconditional love would be appropriate. The word conditional means “subject to one or more conditions or requirements being met; made or granted on certain terms.” Unconditional means “not subject to any conditions.” In the book ‘The Father’s Daughters’ I discuss conditional and unconditional love. God’s love is unconditional, but mankind loves conditionally at times.

How do we know if we are walking in conditional or unconditional love? The answer may be in what you’re expecting in return for your love. Unconditional love has no expectations on its love. When there is love given in expectations of returns then the conditions can set you up for resentments. “The higher your expectations are the greater your resentments will be.”

I was blessed to have a mother who loved us unconditionally. She was affirming and accepting. She wasn’t perfect because no one is perfect but God. She taught us how to accept the differences in others I think her disability was a visual for me to know people treat others differently. But I learned to recognize differences without judgements. The outward appearance isn’t as important as the inward character. Love based in anything outward isn’t real love it’s conditional and no one can thrive in conditional love.  

Children who are loved for just being your child grow up able to accept God’s love for them but when they are conditioned that when they do right, they are loved and when they do wrong, they are not loved it produces all kinds of unhealthy coping mechanism. Such as perfectionism, performance orientation , shame, rejection, they become critical of themselves and others and the list go on.

But what is God’s requirement for His love? Most people would answer do good, be kind etc. But is that His requirement or is that mans? The bible states, in 1 John “God is love.” This can be a hard concept for those who were conditioned by acceptance of works. God loves us unconditionally he doesn’t dis-love because you don’t do everything perfectly.

I think we confuse consequences for behaviors as His not loving you, but the truth is, He still loves you despite your behaviors. Consequences are a necessary learning tool it helps us to recognize mistakes, sin and shows love. The Holy Spirit will convict us of sin but if we don’t repent and turn, he allows the consequences to wake us up. That is love!

If you were raised in conditional love, there is hope and healing for you to receive God’s unconditional love. He loved us so much he sent Jesus to die for our sins before we were even born. Who dies for someone before they even exist? Jesus did. Love is a four-letter word that can bring us joy or pain. Today let the love of God heal your pain and replace it with His Love. He truly does love you unconditionally.