To your faith, do your best to add goodness,
and to that goodness, increase your knowledge.
Then what you know can help to guide your actions.
And, with this self-control, persist in showing
devoted service to God, especially by being
kind to every brother and sister in Christ.
To all of this add agape – not just brotherly
love or passion – but benevolent, sacrificial,
godly love.
2 Peter 1:5-7 prayer-a-phrased by Mary Sayler, ©2017, using scriptures from many of the translations found on Bible Gateway
…
Tuesday, March 14, 2017
Monday, March 13, 2017
God is working it out!
What relief God’s Word brings even in the most difficult times!
"For we KNOW
that ALL
things WORK TOGETHER
for GOOD
for those who LOVE GOD
and are called
according to the PLAN
and purpose of GOD!"
Romans 8:28 paraphrased by Mary Sayler, © 2017, using scriptures from many of the translations on Bible Gateway
...
"For we KNOW
that ALL
things WORK TOGETHER
for GOOD
for those who LOVE GOD
and are called
according to the PLAN
and purpose of GOD!"
Romans 8:28 paraphrased by Mary Sayler, © 2017, using scriptures from many of the translations on Bible Gateway
...
Saturday, March 11, 2017
Loving like Jesus
Every time I’ve read John 13:34, I’ve been puzzled by Jesus’ words: “I’m giving you a new commandment: love one another.” Since I’ve heard that longer than I can remember, this word of exhortation did not seem new to me. But when I looked up the phrase “love one another” on Bible Gateway, I found no earlier reference.
In the Hebrew Bible, however, God says, “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might,” Deuteronomy 6:4-5. Bringing that love down to earth, Leviticus 19:18 says, “you shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
In Matthew 26:37-40, Jesus put those two commands together by saying, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment, and the second is like unto it, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
A problem arises, though, when people have trouble loving themselves, much less their neighbors! Nevertheless, God still wants this, and so the New Testament clarifies the concept of the true love to be found in Christ Jesus:
• He spoke healing words.
• He called people by name.
• He showed God’s love.
• He taught the kind attitudes we’re to have.
• He gave His life.
• He brought us life eternal.
• He called us to be brothers and sisters
• He empowered us to be children of God.
• He continues to pray for us now.
In the hours before His death, Jesus told His disciples: “I give you a new commandment: love one another. As I’ve loved you, so you also must love one another,” John 13:34.
Hopefully, we’ll love and appreciate ourselves and our neighbors. Regardless, we must love one another as conduits of Jesus Christ, Whose love flows in and through us. We can't do this by ourselves, but we can agree to it. We can give Jesus' command our amen.
May the Almighty God our Father help us to allow Christ’s love to pour forth profusely. Let it be! So be it. Amen.
Mary Sayler, © 2017, with scriptures from many of the translations on Bible Gateway
In the Hebrew Bible, however, God says, “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might,” Deuteronomy 6:4-5. Bringing that love down to earth, Leviticus 19:18 says, “you shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
In Matthew 26:37-40, Jesus put those two commands together by saying, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment, and the second is like unto it, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
A problem arises, though, when people have trouble loving themselves, much less their neighbors! Nevertheless, God still wants this, and so the New Testament clarifies the concept of the true love to be found in Christ Jesus:
• He spoke healing words.
• He called people by name.
• He showed God’s love.
• He taught the kind attitudes we’re to have.
• He gave His life.
• He brought us life eternal.
• He called us to be brothers and sisters
• He empowered us to be children of God.
• He continues to pray for us now.
In the hours before His death, Jesus told His disciples: “I give you a new commandment: love one another. As I’ve loved you, so you also must love one another,” John 13:34.
Hopefully, we’ll love and appreciate ourselves and our neighbors. Regardless, we must love one another as conduits of Jesus Christ, Whose love flows in and through us. We can't do this by ourselves, but we can agree to it. We can give Jesus' command our amen.
May the Almighty God our Father help us to allow Christ’s love to pour forth profusely. Let it be! So be it. Amen.
Mary Sayler, © 2017, with scriptures from many of the translations on Bible Gateway
Wednesday, March 1, 2017
Giving up fear for Lent and for ever
On this Ash Wednesday, let us give up all of our fears for Lent and for ever! Pray for the Lord to bind any spirit of fear in or around you and fill you with the Holy Spirit of Love, Joy, Peace, and the Power found in Jesus’ Name. As the Bible says:
God did not give us a spirit of fear!
God gave us a Spirit of Power,
a Spirit of Love,
a non-chaotic Spirit of Order
and Self-control.
2 Timothy 1:7 has been prayer-a-phrased and italicized by Mary Sayler, © 2017, using scriptures from many of the translations found on Bible Gateway.
...
God did not give us a spirit of fear!
God gave us a Spirit of Power,
a Spirit of Love,
a non-chaotic Spirit of Order
and Self-control.
2 Timothy 1:7 has been prayer-a-phrased and italicized by Mary Sayler, © 2017, using scriptures from many of the translations found on Bible Gateway.
...
Monday, February 27, 2017
Putting our loving actions where our mouth is
Dearest Children of God,
let’s not just talk about love
or say we love one another.
Let us demonstrate love
by actions
that show we truly care.
1 John 3:18 has been prayer-a-phrased in the lines above by Mary Sayler, © 2017, who used scriptures from many translations on Bible Gateway.
…
let’s not just talk about love
or say we love one another.
Let us demonstrate love
by actions
that show we truly care.
1 John 3:18 has been prayer-a-phrased in the lines above by Mary Sayler, © 2017, who used scriptures from many translations on Bible Gateway.
…
Tuesday, February 21, 2017
All of God's laws in one word
The laws of God clearly say:
Do not be unfaithful to your spouse.
Do not take the life out of anyone.
Steal absolutely nothing.
And never agonize over having
what someone else has!
These commandments
and all of God’s law can be
summed up in one word:
Love.
Care about other people
and their well-being
as much as you care
about your own.
Love
never wrongs anyone
nor wishes them ill.
So if you keep at heart
your own interests
and also your concerns
for other people, then
your love will completely
satisfy God’s law.
To show how the Bible speaks to us today, Romans 13:9-10 has been prayer-a-phrased by Mary Sayler, © 2017, who used scriptures from the many translations found on Bible Gateway.
…
Do not be unfaithful to your spouse.
Do not take the life out of anyone.
Steal absolutely nothing.
And never agonize over having
what someone else has!
These commandments
and all of God’s law can be
summed up in one word:
Love.
Care about other people
and their well-being
as much as you care
about your own.
Love
never wrongs anyone
nor wishes them ill.
So if you keep at heart
your own interests
and also your concerns
for other people, then
your love will completely
satisfy God’s law.
To show how the Bible speaks to us today, Romans 13:9-10 has been prayer-a-phrased by Mary Sayler, © 2017, who used scriptures from the many translations found on Bible Gateway.
…
Monday, February 20, 2017
Love one another
Beloved friends in Christ,
God loves us so much,
we ought also to love one another.
We haven’t seen God,
but if we give love
to people we can see,
we know God lives in us
and perfects in us His love.
1 John 4:11-12 prayer-a-phrased by Mary Sayler, © 2017, with scriptures from the many translations on Bible Gateway.
…
God loves us so much,
we ought also to love one another.
We haven’t seen God,
but if we give love
to people we can see,
we know God lives in us
and perfects in us His love.
1 John 4:11-12 prayer-a-phrased by Mary Sayler, © 2017, with scriptures from the many translations on Bible Gateway.
…
Friday, February 17, 2017
NOTHING removes us from Christ’s love
What can possibly separate us from Christ’s love?
Can pain and suffering, hardships or distress,
harassment, torment, or torture,
starvation or destitution,
danger or death? No!
The Scriptures say, “For Your sake, Lord,
we’ve been destroyed. We've been thought of
as sheep to be slaughtered!”
But, now –
in all these things we are more than conquerors
through Christ Jesus Who loves us!
For I am certain that neither death nor life,
neither angels nor principalities,
neither anything going on right now
nor anything yet to come –
not soaring heights or plunging depths,
and not anything in all of creation
will ever be able to separate us
from the love of God,
which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 8:35-38 prayer-a-phrased by Mary Sayler, © 2017, with scriptures from the many translations found on Bible Gateway.
...
Can pain and suffering, hardships or distress,
harassment, torment, or torture,
starvation or destitution,
danger or death? No!
The Scriptures say, “For Your sake, Lord,
we’ve been destroyed. We've been thought of
as sheep to be slaughtered!”
But, now –
in all these things we are more than conquerors
through Christ Jesus Who loves us!
For I am certain that neither death nor life,
neither angels nor principalities,
neither anything going on right now
nor anything yet to come –
not soaring heights or plunging depths,
and not anything in all of creation
will ever be able to separate us
from the love of God,
which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 8:35-38 prayer-a-phrased by Mary Sayler, © 2017, with scriptures from the many translations found on Bible Gateway.
...
Wednesday, February 15, 2017
Jesus: The Love Offering
Here’s what real love really is –
no, not our love for God.
Real love is God
in love with us.
God the Father sent
His Son to die in our place –
to take away our sins,
our mistakes, our
wrongdoings,
to become
the one truly needed
sacrifice –
for God to forgive us –
fully,
wholly –
making amends.
Mary Sayler, © 2017, prayer-a-phrased today’s reading in 1 John 4:10 using various translations found on Bible Gateway.
…
no, not our love for God.
Real love is God
in love with us.
God the Father sent
His Son to die in our place –
to take away our sins,
our mistakes, our
wrongdoings,
to become
the one truly needed
sacrifice –
for God to forgive us –
fully,
wholly –
making amends.
Mary Sayler, © 2017, prayer-a-phrased today’s reading in 1 John 4:10 using various translations found on Bible Gateway.
…
Tuesday, January 31, 2017
Our Old Testament God and Love
Some of us think of our Old Testament God as harsh and vengeful, but that’s not what the Hebrew writers who intimately knew God had to say. Nor is that what we will continue to think if we believe God is faultless, flawless, constant, and in no need of change.
From Genesis to Revelation, we have the same God – everlasting to everlasting. However, our perception of God does change as our understanding broadens and matures. For example, try explaining a difficult situation to a young child, who’s incapable of getting what you’re doing or why at that particular moment. Much later, the same circumstances might become clear as the maturing person understands you did what was best at the time.
God always does what’s best for us!
God’s actions may seem to be harsh or vengeful when needed to chastise, correct, and get a person (or peoples) back on the right track. Nevertheless, we can trust God’s actions to flow from an epicenter of perfect love – a love that began in the beginning as many Hebrew writers clearly showed:
“Therefore, know
the Lord your God
faithfully keeps His promises –
from generation to generation –
and clearly shows love and kindness
to those who love and obey Him,”
Deuteronomy 7:9.
“How priceless is Your persistent love, O God!
We children take cover in the shadow of Your wings,”
Psalm 36:7.
“By day, the Lord sends forth His faithful love.
By night, His song stays with me,”
Psalm 42:8.
“O Lord, I trust You with my soul!
For You are good and ready to forgive,
abounding in steadfast love to all who call upon You,”
Psalm 86:4-5
“Don’t tear your clothes! Open your heart!
Return to the Lord your God,
Who is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger and abounding
in a love that will not waver,”
Joel 2:13.
“The Lord Your God lives among You –
the Mighty One Who saves!
Gladly, God rejoices over you.
His love comforts you.
God celebrates your life with song,”
Zephaniah 3:17
Scriptures prayer-a-phrased by Mary Sayler, © 2017-2019, using Bible verses from many translations found on Bible Gateway.
…
Saturday, January 14, 2017
Love God. Love the children of God
If we say, “I love God!”
but loathe a brother
or sister in Christ,
we’re lying!
If we have no regard
for Christians we see,
how can we love God
Who cannot be seen?
The Lord gives this clear command:
If we truly love God, we’ll truly care
about the children of God.
1 John 4:20-21 from the Verse of the Day posted by Bible Gateway and prayer-a-phrased by Mary Sayler, © 2017
…
but loathe a brother
or sister in Christ,
we’re lying!
If we have no regard
for Christians we see,
how can we love God
Who cannot be seen?
The Lord gives this clear command:
If we truly love God, we’ll truly care
about the children of God.
1 John 4:20-21 from the Verse of the Day posted by Bible Gateway and prayer-a-phrased by Mary Sayler, © 2017
…
Tuesday, October 25, 2016
Watch out for love!
Joshua 23:11: “Be very watchful of yourselves to love the LORD your God.”
Prayer:
Parents often tell their children
to be watchful of potential dangers:
fast-moving traffic,
enticing strangers,
weird weather, or whatever
seems worrisome,
and You, Heavenly Father,
remind us of this too.
But, I do not remember
ever telling my children
to watch out for love:
Yes!
Let us be watchful of kind acts
and learn from them with thanksgiving.
Let us be on the lookout for caring faces
of people who love to help, and let us
listen carefully to tones of voice
accompanying tender words
and honest prayer.
Oh, Lord, my God,
help me to notice You.
Help me to be aware
of Your ongoing goodness
and amazing creativity.
Let me not be distracted
by moods, emotions, desires,
or anything that takes my attention
from You.
Help me to praise You, notice the love
around me,
and give You the love You deserve.
Thoughts: Busyness and skewed priorities often take our focus from God and onto people, problems, or pride. If someone were watching, would that person see an obvious love for God? What evidence do I see of my faith in God and the love I have for others?
Mary Sayler, ©2016
….
Prayer:
Parents often tell their children
to be watchful of potential dangers:
fast-moving traffic,
enticing strangers,
weird weather, or whatever
seems worrisome,
and You, Heavenly Father,
remind us of this too.
But, I do not remember
ever telling my children
to watch out for love:
Yes!
Let us be watchful of kind acts
and learn from them with thanksgiving.
Let us be on the lookout for caring faces
of people who love to help, and let us
listen carefully to tones of voice
accompanying tender words
and honest prayer.
Oh, Lord, my God,
help me to notice You.
Help me to be aware
of Your ongoing goodness
and amazing creativity.
Let me not be distracted
by moods, emotions, desires,
or anything that takes my attention
from You.
Help me to praise You, notice the love
around me,
and give You the love You deserve.
Thoughts: Busyness and skewed priorities often take our focus from God and onto people, problems, or pride. If someone were watching, would that person see an obvious love for God? What evidence do I see of my faith in God and the love I have for others?
Mary Sayler, ©2016
….
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