The Rule of Love

"What I’d failed to realize was that I shouldn’t do those things NOT because of the consequences (because in all truth, much of our life is lived without physical consequences) but because doing what was wrong would break relationship with God, and then eventually others.

It was about relationship.  Not about the rules. Because in the right relationship a person doesn’t really need rules.

Let’s just call it the rule of Love.  Jesus called it the Greatest Commandment.

If I love God and if I’m concerned about my intimacy with Him, then the more I want to please Him.  The more my life will look like a person who is in Love with their Creator.  And the more I will live in ways that are righteous and are in line with what we consider “rules”.  I’ll need the rules less as a rigid law because I’m focused on pleasing Him (and running everything through that filter). I will begin to do those things naturally that bring me closer to Him."

- An excerpt from The Rule of Love by Sarah Markley on her blog The Best Days of My Life

Making A Name For Yourself

"According to the world, whether you and I make a name for ourselves in this life depends on what we do and say to convince others of our importance. This kind of self-promotional thinking doesn’t just happen in the workplace. It can bleed into our spiritual identity and affect how we relate to God.

...When I evaluate my identity based on results I can see and positive circumstances, I focus more on trying to make things happen, rather than enjoying what God has for me right now... 

Moved by great love, Jesus gave Himself, totally, in exchange for me.  I don’t need to prove my worth to Him. In fact, quite the opposite is true. I need to exchange my strivings for God’s love to transform me. In the absence of self-branding, I yield and God shapes my path.  The more I give myself over to God’s hidden work of the heart, the more I understand and experience his favor."

- An excerpt from Power Breakfast with Jesus by Bonnie Gray on her blog Faith Barista

Where Do We Begin?

"Nothing truly valuable in life comes easy. Often the successes with the greatest rewards are the ones with the longest paths and the toughest journeys. Maturity in life – spiritual or otherwise – does not happen instantly.

What do you need to begin a long journey, to scale a huge mountain? What did Jesus tell the apostles when they asked him to increase their faith? “He replied, ‘Because you have so little faith, I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.’” (Matthew 17:20)

- An excerpt from A Journey Begins with A Mustard Seed by Heather Sunseri on her blog Balance with Purpose

Learning Obedience

"Although He was God's Son, yet He learned obedience from the sufferings which He endured; and so, having been made perfect, He became to all who obey Him the source and giver of eternal salvation." (Hebrews 5:8-9, WNT)

"This passage from Hebrews is one of endless fascination to me. Jesus—the perfection of God in human flesh—was "made perfect" (or "made complete") by learning obedience to His Father. He became something more than He already was in this experience."

- An excerpt from Made Perfect by Anne Bundy on her blog Building His Body

Learning To Be Open

"Most of us probably imagine ourselves as rather friendly people, but I’ll be the first to admit that my schedule does not leave much wiggle room for letting others into my family’s world. As fast paced and as busy as our lives are these days, unless you make an intentional effort to build relationships with people it is unlikely to happen. So as we seek to love people the way God loves them we should not wait for some mystical, magical moment, but we should make the practical step of sharing our time and our family with them."

- An excerpt from Lessons from a Party, Part 1: Learning to be Open by Matt from Becoming Last