You are living it, breathing it and dishing it out. Not superficial
charity. Not the kind of love that just elevates your status, that causes ‘warm-fuzzys’
to well up from inside. Not the kind of love that is convenient and as soon as
you begin to feel a sacrifice coming on you can duck out and not give so much.
You are a word in action. Love. You have in dwelling Spirit
power and Christ is instilling in you True
Love. He is filling you to over flowing and now you are spreading it around.
You are pouring out every drop. You are doing the back breaking work of
shoveling out mountains of love; day in and day out; in the here and now. Where
love is nitty-gritty, not all flowers and sunshine. The blessings are profound
and you keep praising the Lord.
There are endless opportunities, and they are right on your
door step. You are loving and living and lives are benefiting from the fruit
Christ is growing in you.
This is what you are called to do. There is no reason that
you could not continue in this path, and there is nothing that can remove you
from this journey of the poured-out life of a true born-again follower of
Christ.
Nothing.
…
You make a mistake. Relatively minor, but significant to one.
You apologize but the damage is done.
You go back to try and pour out; but in the back of your mind
you hear these words; ‘Careful. You might mess up again. Didn’t you see how
disappointed they were last time? What if you did it again, or something worse?’
You turn inward, seeking out the flaws of self; examining.
…
You have a weekend of relaxation with fellow believers and
bask in the glory of God’s creation. You praise Him for the opportunity to experience
His greatness and the beauty He made and for friendships grown stronger. It was
amazing, and you can’t wait to experience it again.
But wait. You hear a voice say; ‘This is not the right way to
living a truly Christ built existence. Where were the orphans you are supposed
to be taking care of when you were rubbing your full belly with your feet
around a fire in the company of friends?? What about the widows, and the starving,
and the lost? While you were out having fun, the world was dying!!’
Guilt. Fear of failure. You turn in again. ‘Where did I go
wrong?’ you ask yourself and try to find out what is right, ‘what really is the
next step? how do I know who, where, when and how to love?’
…
Distraction. The tempter is the king of confusion and noise.
He sees you living out love and he sees lives being resurrected by your poured
out existence. He has to stir the pot. He has to keep you from thinking about
OTHERS. If he gets you to look inside, to question your motives, to second
guess your standing in Christ; then he’s won.
He’d rather see you trying to make yourself a better Christian
than to find you out loving the least of these. He’d rather see you marking off
a ‘devotional-duties’ list than find you on your knees in devote praise to the
true God.
Do Not Be Moved. You do not have to fight the tempter, for
Christ will fight for you. All you must do is stand in the place He has put you
in and praise the Lord.
There is no question in love.
Where? Here. {Where you are}
When? Now. {There is no other time}
Why? Because. {You have a calling}
Who? Them. {The person right in front of you}
How? Christ. {With Christ, in Christ, because Christ first
loved you}
____________________________________________________
Blessings - Kerry
