Add This To Get The Most From Life

For true life, add the kind of love the Bible teaches!

“The Greatest of These is Love.”

The above words from Paul in 1 Corinthians 13:13 grow more meaningful as I grow in Christ.

Faith is awesome! It is electrifying! It helps me feel alive and keeps me rooted in God’s word. But love is greater.

Hope! What can we say about it? It has helped countless people walk through this life in the roughest of times. It has brought light to hearts that would otherwise be full of darkness. But love is still better.

How can we quantify faith, hope, and love and come to the conclusion that one is better than the other? It’s not a matter of quantifying but of essence and timeframes.

First of all, our hope for Heaven and our hope to see God one day will vanish when we meet Him. Why would we yearn and long for Heaven if we are already there? Hope will be fulfilled, but love will continue. 

The same is true about faith. We now live by faith, not sight. But one day we will SEE God. Our faith will be fulfilled, but we will always have love. So love is better because of how much longer it will exist.

There is another reason love is superior. Love is better than faith or hope because God’s very nature is love. John wrote by the Holy Spirit in 1 John 4:7-8, “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love.”

When we show love, we are showing the essence of God’s character and nature.

Do you want to find God? Love.

Do you want to be like God? Love.

Do you want to show that God is living within you? LOVE.

There is no such thing as loving too much!

For You Nay-Sayers:

Oh, sure, I know that some will say that if you love someone too much you will cause pain, and that is true in a sense. But I’m going to get into a discussion of semantics here. IF we love in the PROPER FASHION then there is no such thing as loving “too much.”

In Galatians 5:23, Paul said that against love (among other things) there is no law. That simply means that God has not restricted us from showing as much love as we are capable of showing! There are no limits to this.

So in what sense can love be unhealthy?

I’m glad you asked! Love must be accurately defined by the Word of God, the Bible. In fact it is a much more complicated idea than most people seem to think.

In Romans 10:13 Paul stated that “love is the fulfillment of the law”. It’s said in the context of talking about all the laws that God has given to us to follow. The gist of the text tells us that when we obey the requirements of God, that is actually the way we show love to God and/or others.

Love By Any Other Definition...

So allow me to try to explain my thoughts here. If I do not treat a person the way God tells me to treat him, then that is not God’s definition of love. And I suppose we ought to admit that GOD’s definition is the only one that really counts. So while I might love my wife, if I am putting her above God, that action/priority is NOT showing her love. It is certainly not showing love to God.

So if you lose your mind and start stalking a girl because you “love” her, don’t blame me for the misery and trouble you’ll find in that pursuit. I said that you could never love “too much” but you can certainly warp love into something that is harmful to you and others.

Is that all semantics? Maybe so, but think about it for a bit and you’ll see the importance of it.

If you follow God’s word in how to treat others, how to treat yourself, and especially how to treat God, you will never find a problem with loving too much!

This Is A Biblical Concept!

Just to clarify that this is a biblical idea: Peter wrote in 2 Peter 1:5-7 that (among other things) we should add love to our faith. If you look in verse 5 it says that we should do this “giving all diligence”. Diligence simply means haste or earnestness. “All” is self-explanatory. Peter said that we should devote ourselves to adding these spiritual elements to our faith—and one of those elements (in fact, the greatest) is love.

So do you want to live like never before? Great adventures in life await you when you embark on this journey! With all your gusto and might, add love to your character. Don’t hold back. Jesus came to show us how to truly LIVE—and He has shown us the best that life can offer. It all begins with deciding to love.

What do you think? Start the conversation below!

Benefits of Boredom

There is great value in time spent alone.

As a boy just about to enter the turbulent teen years, we lived on a small section of wooded land in Northeast Texas. Our 3.5 acres abutted land that stretched uninterrupted for several miles. In my innocence I would wander those woods for what seemed like miles (but was probably more like 300 yards of a spiraled course). It was a time of fascination with the wonders of God's creation.

I treasure those days. They were the days of innocence and discovery. I spent time learning, thinking, playing, and all the while developing. Sometimes it included my two brothers. But it was always time to myself, to do what I wanted, and to enjoy my childhood.

Do you have memories that you treasure like this?

If you have children, are you allowing them to have similar experiences?

Today's world is busy and demanding. Children get caught up in activities and responsibilities in school, sports, and even electronic media like Facebook and blogs. They are so busy working on so many things! This work is important. They need to learn how to play with others. They need to learn the value of teams, hard work, and sacrifice. But they also need something more.

They need to be alone.

You might think your child spends too much time alone already. Maybe he is always playing video games or she is always texting. They seem like they are alone, but even playing computer games is not the alone time I am talking about. Those games set the agenda. They have goals to accomplish, tasks to perform. Their minds are led by the people who manufactured the games. No, that is not alone time.

Alone time is time to yourself with no distractions. Your boy or girl might have toys, but during this time children should have nothing that leads their minds. This alone time forces them to think. It forces them to find something to fill the time. It forces their personalities to develop and grow. It shows them what they like and dislike. It helps them make decisions about priorities. And it gives them that very important time to daydream.

Even little children need this time. One of the best things you can do is to enforce a "quiet time" in your home. Sometime during each day require your children to unplug from the Internet and TV, go to a place where they are alone, and grow. Set a regular time and stick to it.

Boredom is not a villain. If you provide opportunity in a safe environment, boredom can be a fantastic motivator and teacher.

Regularly allow your child to be bored in a safe and structured environment. And let them figure out how to pass the time. When they are old and reflect on life, they will be happy for those wonderful times of innocence and discovery.

Bringing Life To The Living

Jesus came to a planet of living beings and brought life.

Since His coming, we have seen attacks against Christianity and the Bible. These will continue because people in darkness hate the light. But the light is life. Jesus shows us what life is about. He shows us how to live!

It should be obvious that the Bible does not reveal the complete knowledge of God within its pages. How could any book contain such knowledge? However, He has expressed to us what we need to know.

In 1 Corinthians 2:7-16, Paul wrote about the role of the Holy Spirit in giving us the Word of God. The Spirit revealed the wisdom of God that had previously been hidden. This was the plan of God for the abundant life Jesus promised in John 10:10.

The Bible reveals what was once hidden. God is able to communicate so that we can understand Him. With effort, we can understand the Bible. It was written for us to understand life and to access the promises and the power of God for our salvation.

Of course, there are misinterpretations and alleged contradictions, but these are unnecessary. Thorough learning and continued study can reveal truth. And as for contradictions, they have never been successfully proven. Since the words were first recorded people have attempted to set them aside by various means. There have been hundreds of accusations made against the Bible. All of them have been overturned by study and analysis of the Bible.

Second Timothy 3:16-17 teaches us that all Scripture is given by the inspiration of God. The word "inspiration" literally means "God-breathed [out]". It is the expression of God Himself. Thus it is profitable for "doctrine, for reproof, for correction, and for instruction in righteousness."

For us, the above means that the Bible is complete. Second Peter 1:3 tells us that we have been given "all things that pertain to life and godliness" through the knowledge Jesus has. This knowledge was passed to us through the Holy Spirit to the Apostles (1 Corinthians 2). We have no need to look anywhere else to find how to live a life pleasing to and blessed by God.

The Bible is the means to our salvation. Jude 3 teaches us the importance of the faith--that it is worth fighting for (figuratively). Paul wrote in Romans 10:17 that faith comes by hearing the Word of God. Hebrews 11:6 tells us that without faith it is impossible to please God. So what the Bible provides is not just "good advice" to consider. It provides the very information we need to be saved from destruction and punishment from God. It tells us how to find the blessings of God's promises.

There is no replacement for the Bible. It is the expression of God. It is authoritative, complete, and unblemished.

With our noses in the book, our feet on the path, and our eyes watching carefully for dangers, we will be granted the promise of Jesus: "The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly" (John 10:10).

Jesus came to a planet of living people and brought life.

Are You Living?

The question of life has puzzled scientists and philosophers alike. We are alive and we know that we are alive. We can describe life and explain what it is like, but isn't that a little unnecessary? The only ones who would be able to receive, comprehend, or appreciate a full explanation for life are already alive. Because of this fact, many people might be tempted not to consider anything written about it. But there is good reason to discuss life. Not everyone alive is living!

Not everyone alive is living. In John 10:10 Jesus said, “The thief comes to steal, to kill, and to destroy, but I have come that they might have life and that they may have it more abundantly.” Jesus came to give life to living humans. No contradiction is intended.

John 1:4-5 tells us, “In [Jesus] was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.” Jesus came to a world of darkness and brought light. He came into a world of mere existence and brought life.

Many people seem to think that living life "to the fullest" requires living in danger. Others seem to think that it requires living for self and for pleasure. Jesus taught us that if we want to live life the way it was intended, we do it by looking into and understanding the light of life. We live by understanding and following the life and teachings of Jesus. 

Those of us who profess faith in Christ should know this, but we often have trouble making application of what we know. We have trouble seeing through the ironies of Christianity. As we reflect upon the life and teachings of Jesus, my hope is that you will be able to see more clearly what life is about. From that, I hope to encourage you to live.