Quote of the Week | My Job is to Love People

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Billy Graham, Christian Living, criticism, Jesus, legalism, Love, people, Quote of the Week

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“It is the Holy Spirit’s job to convict, God’s job to judge, and my job to love.”
— Billy Graham

How would it change the church if we poured our efforts into loving people instead of judging them? How would it change the world?

As Christians, we sometimes assume it is our job to act as the “spiritual police” in our communities. We take it upon ourselves to root out and expose any sort of potential sin or heresy or dissent that we perceive to be wrong or harmful.

While there is a place for spiritual interventions and calling out sin, I think many times we’ve lost sight of the necessary balance and inadvertently crossed the line into pharisaical territory. We’ve become our own spiritual versions of accuser, judge, and jury without leaving enough room for the power of love or mercy. We shake the dust off our hands in satisfaction that we’ve done God a service by refusing to allow any perceived offense to go unchallenged.

In our well-meaning attempts to foster holiness and righteousness in our communities, have we unwittingly become like the stone-throwing religious leaders that Jesus spoke out against time after time?

Quote of the Week | Peace in the Storm

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advice, God, inspiration, life, peace, personal, Quote of the Week, quotes, storms of life

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“Peace. It does not mean to be in a place
where there is no noise, trouble, or hard work.
It means to be in the midst of those things
and still be calm in your heart.”
~ Unknown

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Peace in the storm. That sounds sort of contradictory, doesn’t it? But think about it. Do storms and peace have to be mutually exclusive?

Legalism vs. Love: The Heart of the Matter

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Christian Living, God, Jesus, legalism, Love, relationship

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Happy fall, readers! I am so excited for autumn to be here and everything that comes with it. Pumpkin spice lattes, brilliant colors, cool crisp temperatures, warm sweaters and scarves. It’s gotta be my favorite season of all.

Meanwhile, I’m feeling really bad about my failure of late to post regularly on my blog, so I’m making up for it with a super long post that has actually been a long time in the draft box being written and rewritten.

This is a topic near to my heart in which I share some of my personal experiences and thoughts that comprised my journey from legalism to love. If you’ve been in a similar place spiritually, then you’ll probably relate to a lot of things in my post.

The Art of Hanging Out with Yourself

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God's presence, God's voice, introvert, personal, problem-solving, quiet, silence, solitude, think

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This week I had a few days off, so my sister and I decided to take this opportunity to go stay at a peaceful, secluded Airbnb in the mountains near where we live and just get some quality rest and relaxation.

This place is seriously an introvert’s paradise. It’s secluded (i.e. private!), but situated in a gated community near a small town, so not too far away from civilization; also, it is quiet. Like, really quiet. Did I mention quiet? Which needs no words of recommendation for the introvert. Plus, it’s beautiful. The living room window and back porch open out to an incredible view over a valley, with pines, oaks, and other greenery scattered around, and frequent wildlife activity. It’s amazing! Peaceful, quiet, relaxing. A much-needed retreat from the daily stress and obligations of life.

I love to be alone. I’ve probably mentioned this before, but I’ll say it again. I really enjoy being by myself. Other people might think I’m crazy for wanting to spend an entire day or weekend alone at home, but I thrive on solitude. I think it’s my natural state.

Being alone is so peaceful, relaxing, and non-stressful. You add other humans into the mix, and I start to feel my stress level rising, depending on the specific people involved.

But give me a day or two to just immerse myself in utter solitude, and I feel refreshed, revitalized, and filled with world-conquering confidence.

Maybe that’s not so surprising. After all, I am an introvert (my personality type is INTP, if you’re into that)–and if you consider yourself an introvert, you probably relate to me on some level.

But, whether you’re an introvert or not, there is something special about spending time away from the bustle and noises of the world, away from the constant demands and voices of people and parties, business and machinery.

Are You Missing Out On An Adventure? — Come Awake

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adventure, Christian Living, God, great things, inspiration, ministry

Check out this great post from Come Awake (link below).

Even though our lives as Jesus followers can seem overwhelmingly mundane and ordinary at times, God designed us all to do great things for him! That doesn’t mean that every day will be a red letter day for God’s kingdom, but we also can’t lose sight of the big dreams and goals He has put in our hears. While you’re living your life, don’t get discouraged in the everyday things. Keep going, and as William Carey, missionary to India, said, “Expect great things from God; attempt great things for God.”

The other morning my husband and I were walking out to our cars to drive to work. The air was fresh and the sky was a little overcast. My husband looked over at me and said, “Today feels like a good day for an adventure.” And it did. Being the responsible adults that we are, […]

via Are You Missing Out On An Adventure? — Come Awake

Quote of the Week | To Love and Be Loved

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courage, God's love, inspiration, Love, strength

Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage. ~ Lao Tzu

What would life be like without people to love and to love us back? I’m extremely blessed in that I have never gone a moment in my life without knowing that someone loves me. It’s experiencing a constant and unconditional love like this that fuels my response of loving them back in the same way.

Happy Easter! From A Writer’s Reflections

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easter, holiday, Jesus, reflections, resurrection, risen, Spiritual Reflections, Spring, sunday

Happy Easter/Resurrection Day! Today was a full day of worship, fellowship with my family, friends, and church, lots of good food, and enjoying the blessings that God has given.

Unfortunately that also made me too busy to write my own post commemorating Easter Sunday, so instead I’m sharing this beautiful post below by Anna from her blog Ginger Tea & Sympathy.

Take some time to really think on and consider what happened on this day 2,000 years ago and what it means to you.

“The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.” (Matthew 28:5-6 NIV) The Holy Week is past and today we celebrate the resurrection […]

via Joyful Easter — Ginger Tea & Sympathy

My Theme for the New Year

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dialogue, God, inspiration, interactive, new year, prayer, resolution, theme, word

 

 

For the past few years, I’ve been asking God for a special word or theme that He wants me to focus on during the new year. Last year, it was “loving others with an unconditional love and compassion”; the year before that it was “abiding in Christ.”

Asking, Seeking, Knocking: Why Don’t We See Answers?

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answers, ask, asking seeking knocking, door, inspiration, knock, matthew 7:7, opened, scripture, seek

“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent?  If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!”

~Matthew 7:7-11

Matthew 7:7 may be one of the most quoted verses in the Bible, and yet, ironically, one of the least to be actually understood and carried out in a believer’s life.

Why do I say that? Well, in my limited experience, I’ve heard that verse quoted and seen it engraved on plaques and statues, hung in churches and homes, and adorning jewelry and pictures to no end. But very rarely have I heard a Christian talk about the concepts of that verse as being real and true in their life, about how God has been rewarding their diligent practice of asking, seeking, and knocking.

Ask, Seek, Knock | From The Life Project Blog

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answers, ask seek knock, God, life, prayer, reblog, truth

Hey everyone,

I apologize for being so silent lately on my blog. I promise you I’m still alive and well–more busy than usual actually. Work, travel, random stuff. All of that.

I have been working on several posts recently; I just haven’t been spending enough time to perfect any of them…lol. Anyway, my aim is to change that and actually start getting regular posts out again.

I’ve been working on a post about this well-known verse: “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you” (Matthew 7:7).

But recently I also saw this post by Don Merritt on The Life Project blog talking about this same topic and thought it was a really good summary of what Jesus was teaching here. Check it out below!

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“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. “Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if […]

via Ask, Seek, Knock — The Life Project