What Would Jesus Say?

Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward Him and said concerning him, “See! Here is an Israelite indeed [a true descendant of Jacob], in whom there is no guile nor deceit nor falsehood nor duplicity!” [John 1:47 (AMP)]

Other Bible translations of the above passage use words like “trustworthy” and “sincere” in Jesus’ description of Nathanael. The Message version says he had “not a false bone in his body.” How do we measure up in comparison to Nathanael? What words would other people use to describe us? What sort of words we would use to describe ourselves? Most important, when Jesus meets us, will He be able to say, “Here is a genuine Christian, one who is honest and principled, a person of complete integrity”?

We’ve Got to Love Both God and Man

If anyone boasts, “I love God,” and goes right on hating his brother or sister, thinking nothing of it, he is a liar. If he won’t love the person he can see, how can he love the God he can’t see? The command we have from Christ is blunt: Loving God includes loving people. You’ve got to love both. [1 John 4:20-21 (MSG)]

Lord, help me rid my heart of anger, disdain, and animosity. Let the way I treat other people be a direct reflection of my relationship with you. May I be as generous and forgiving with my love as you are with yours.

Greet the Day with Joy

2013-8-30But as for me, I will sing about your power. Each morning I will sing with joy about your unfailing love. For you have been my refuge, a place of safety when I am in distress. O my strength, to you I sing praises, for you, O God, are my refuge, the God who shows me unfailing love. [Psalm 59:16-17 (NLT)]

O Lord, may I wake each morning with a song in my heart. Let me be like the mockingbird who greets the dawn singing with confidence and delight. May I face the day’s challenges with a positive attitude and praise for you. I don’t want to be like the fish crow who shares his pessimism with a nasal whine of “uh-uh.” He’s emphatic about saying “no” to the day’s possibilities while the mockingbird sings almost endlessly with enthusiasm and hope.

Satisfy us each morning with your unfailing love, so we may sing for joy to the end of our lives. [Psalm 90:14 (NLT)]

 

Expectations

I’m afraid that I may come and find you different from what I want you to be, and that you may find me different from what you want me to be. [2 Corinthians 12:20a (GW)]

Sometimes people or events don’t live up to our expectations; it’s good to remember that we might not live up to the expectations of others, either.
Lord, give us confidence that, even when things don’t turn out the way we expect them to, they will turn out the way they are meant to.

Make Every Day Count

Lord, remind me how brief my time on earth will be. Remind me that my days are numbered—how fleeting my life is. You have made my life no longer than the width of my hand. My entire lifetime is just a moment to you; at best, each of us is but a breath [Psalm 39:4-5 (NLT)]

Giver of Life, thank you for the days with which I have been blessed. Thank you for the days you hold of my future, no matter how many or how few they may be. Show me how to live each day to the fullest so that, when my life comes to an end, I will have no remorse, regrets or unfinished business.

The Kiss of Christian Love

2013-8-27Greet each other with a kiss of love. Peace to all of you who are in Christ. [1 Peter 5:14 (GW)]

These were Peter’s words to the early Christians who were suffering for their faith. I’m not sure what would happen to us today if we greeted everyone we met with a kiss, even if we only did it at church. No matter how chaste the kiss might be, it would probably result in slapped faces, harassment lawsuits, or irate spouses. As followers of Christ, we don’t have to kiss everyone we meet, but we do have to greet them all with Christian love. That means we greet everyone with a tolerant, forgiving and loving heart.

Above all, love each other warmly, because love covers many sins. [1 Peter 4:8 (GW)]