Week One: Love
Day One:
Kylie Voight
We are going to be diving into the fruits of the Spirit. The fruits are found in Galatians 5, which says, "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law." This week, we'll be digging into the first fruit, which is love. What is love? In 1 Corinthians, Paul tells us the various attributes that love possesses:
"[4] Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant [5] or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; [6] it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. [7] Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. [8] Love never ends..."
Just before these few verses, Paul is telling the Galatians about the infinite importance of love. He essentially says you can do the greatest of things and still amount to nothing if you do it without love. We need love to be a part of everything we do because it is by love that our actions and words matter.
My challenge to you this week is to think about the various attributes of love. Which ones are you doing pretty well? Which ones could you work on? Do some reflecting on your own, but more importantly, ask God to reveal which ones need improvement.
"[4] Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant [5] or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; [6] it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. [7] Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. [8] Love never ends..."
Just before these few verses, Paul is telling the Galatians about the infinite importance of love. He essentially says you can do the greatest of things and still amount to nothing if you do it without love. We need love to be a part of everything we do because it is by love that our actions and words matter.
My challenge to you this week is to think about the various attributes of love. Which ones are you doing pretty well? Which ones could you work on? Do some reflecting on your own, but more importantly, ask God to reveal which ones need improvement.
Day Two:
Allison Holsclaw
We tend to think about people who are easy to love: significant other, family, friends, etc. Do you ever think about the people who are harder to love: people with opposite opinions, people who make it difficult to love them, maybe even your enemies? Do you think about God and His love?
Let's break down these verses:
When it says neighbor, that's implying that we love those who may seem like enemies (Matthew 5:44 - But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you), those who may not "like" us. Loving our neighbor is shown by kindness, patience, and gentleness.
If you are going to take anything from this message today on who we should love, let it be this:
Love God, and love others.
Let's break down these verses:
- "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind." When Matthew says this, it's perfectly clear that we are to love the Lord with ALL that we are.
- "Love your neighbor as yourself."
When it says neighbor, that's implying that we love those who may seem like enemies (Matthew 5:44 - But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you), those who may not "like" us. Loving our neighbor is shown by kindness, patience, and gentleness.
If you are going to take anything from this message today on who we should love, let it be this:
Love God, and love others.
Day Three:
Jenna Voight
God is love!
1 John 4:16 says “And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.”
God's love is pure, everlasting, overflowing, faultless, beautiful, and pure. God's love never ends and it doesn’t change when we mess up. We were designed to have a “God-shaped hole” in our hearts. Because Jesus sacrificed his life, we can experience the love we were created for.
God's love allows us to see all he has for us. He also allows you to see yourself the way he does and the world around you as he does.
Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. (1 John 4:7-8)
Ask the Lord if there are any areas in your life that he wants to increase your awareness of his love?
1 John 4:16 says “And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.”
God's love is pure, everlasting, overflowing, faultless, beautiful, and pure. God's love never ends and it doesn’t change when we mess up. We were designed to have a “God-shaped hole” in our hearts. Because Jesus sacrificed his life, we can experience the love we were created for.
God's love allows us to see all he has for us. He also allows you to see yourself the way he does and the world around you as he does.
Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. (1 John 4:7-8)
Ask the Lord if there are any areas in your life that he wants to increase your awareness of his love?
Comments
Post a Comment