Fruit of the Spirit - The Love Podcast

I am enamored at the gift of the Holy Spirit and the gift of Jesus. That God has given us new life and rewritten old laws is incredible. Today I’ll read from Matthew 12:1-21 from the New International Version, you can read along at BibleGateway.com if you’d like.

Fruit of the Spirit - The Love Podcast
To read along…

Matthew 12:18 from the NIV

Here is my servant whom I have chosen,
the one I love, in whom I delight;
I will put my Spirit on him,
and he will proclaim justice to the nations.

That is my favorite verse. God gave this gift to Jesus and he in turn gave it to us. How incredible is that. He gave it to “the one I love.” Does that not speak volumes about love? We can empower good through loving others.

Is there someone you can love where you think love could make a real impact on another’s life?

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Matthew 22:37-39 (NIV)

Jesus replied: “‘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 it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’

Love was the first fruit listed in Galatians 5:22. Why? Because it is the most important. We have to love God with all our heart, love ourselves and love our neighbor. Without this love it seems hard to accomplish any of the fruit of the Spirit.

How should we love? As God loves us.

If you’ve ever been to a Women of Faith conference then I know I don’t have to explain their purpose to you. For those that haven’t, the Women of Faith conference experience is out of this world and you leave the forum as if you’ve just been on a weekend retreat with your closest Christian friends.

In the beginning…

Founded in 1996 to encourage Christian women of faith, the Women of Faith group began their journey with 10 sold-out events held in churches. The numbers of 36,000 for ten conferences in the first year, to me are phenomenal. I mean, I know if I tried to throw together ten conferences in a year, I’m guessing I might be lucky to get 36 Christians at each event. Read the rest of this entry »

Philippians 4:4-7

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say Rejoice.
Let your gentleness be known to everyone.
The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything,
but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving
let your requests be made known to God.
And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding,
will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

And the peace of God…we jump right from joy to peace. It says while we are celebrating in Him, He is near.

Near, close to me. When I talked about the birth of my daughter in last week’s podcast I can tell you that I still remember how near He was. While I should have followed my instincts and told my husband to stay I let the nurse dictate otherwise and when he left there was no one but me.

I wasn’t going to have that, no, I prayed and so wanted things to turn out right, and please make sure my husband comes back in time and please make sure those doctors and nurses are right…and please don’t leave me alone…I need peace.

That fruit of the Spirit, peace is so important. Look at that, it made the top three, Love, Joy, Peace…what do you know about that? As if connected by twine to gently gather together. We love, we rejoice, we find peace.

We have it on good authority where to find peace. Isaiah 9:6-7…

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulder. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this.

And with that we can remember that “Love and faithfulness meet together; righteousness and peace kiss each other.” Psalm 85:10

Do you know where to find Peace? Have you found it in the Lord?

Time and time again in the bible we are told He loves us and He will provide for us. If He cares for the birds, He will take care of us as well. Think of Job, he lost it all, but God gave him back even more.

He has given us Jesus, the Holy Spirit and blessings too numerous to count when we recognize them. We must remember how He will always love us. We must also remember how he calls us to do the same.

To close the week of love and the fruit of the Spirit, I thought I’d add a little family fun to the mix. Enjoy this video from GodTube.

Do you think love is the most important fruit of the Spirit? Do you think it adds something important to all the other fruits?

Forget about Easter and Christmas when you can gift shop for your family. Christians today can spend money any time of the year. Retailers know this and family Christian stores are available in most communities. However some have been hit hard in the last five years or so because competition from bigger retailers looking for the Christian dollar is growing. So instead of finding yourself in what once used to be the cozy little book store with people that knew your name, you may be perusing for family friendly items in a huge retail store.

This shortly after you’ve tithed at church and went home to read the Sunday advertisements while spending time with your family. Christians being a well sought after commodity might be buying into it. Personally I like leaving church on Sunday and then going home to…hmmm what was that word…yes, rest, that was it. I like going home to rest on Sunday. But, honestly I know there is no rest for the weary and these days we fill our weekends up with the tasks we can’t complete in a week because the week is filled with work.

So everybody wants your money after all that work…and most times we just want to spend it anyways. Meanwhile they’ll do anything to get it. Just consider the dilemma retailers were in when deciding whether their employees should say “Merry Christmas” or “Happy Holidays” in the last few years and you know exactly what I’m talking about. Personally if I make my way into a store and there is a friendly customer service agent smiling and willing to talk to me and if needed assist me, they could smile and say to me “Happy Sweet Potato Day to you madam” and I wouldn’t care. But don’t call me madam.

Point being?

Do we hold onto our dollar for those that cater to our family, Christian families alone?

Or

Do we go out into the world and support those that will treat a family, Christian or otherwise fairly without putting on a Christian face?

The dollar changes more than just the retailer, it changes the purchaser. And while yes we should be weary of where our dollar goes, and hope that it is used appropriately after it has left our purse, isn’t it more important that we remember how we should treat people than how they or we believe they should treat us?

Being a parent isn’t easy. Do you wonder if being a Christian parent has made it any easier? Although we didn’t go to church while I was growing up in a small rural community, church was too far away and my mom didn’t drive…and oh, my dad wasn’t exactly a church-goer (remember Mr. Walton), I would say we were raised Christian. Read the rest of this entry »

Are Christian marriages in trouble? No more so than a secular marriage. In 2004, The Barna Research Group found the divorce rate nearly equal between born-again Christians and the general public.

Getting married is a big job. Working at a Christian marriage should be an easier job. If a Christian marriage isn’t working what can you and your spouse do?

Determine why the marriage is in trouble. Christians and the secular population get divorced for different reasons. While seculars divorce for incompatibility, Christian marriages usually fail for one of three reasons; adultery, abuse and abandonment.

If you have a Christian marriage in trouble, and are a devout Christian, you can consider Christian counseling. Please take the time to recognize if you are in a bad situation, suffering from physical or emotional abuse. If so, make sure that you (and your children) are safe from harm.

What makes Christian counseling different from secular counseling when trying to save a Christian marriage? The Bible.

The Bible is recognized as the authority, the final word, on many issues. Scripture will be a part of the counseling process along with traditional psychology. Be prepared to look into yourself to address your obedience to God and his will. To make a sincere attempt to save your Christian marriage you have to be open to God’s word.

To read more about the Barna Research Group and the dilemma in Christian divorce rates, visit Christians Divorce at Same Rate as Others But for Different Reasons at John Mark Ministries. You’ll find a great list of reading resources on the topic which you can find from Zondervan.

It is interesting to note that the number one Christian book sold on the market today is Gary Chapman’s The Five Love Languages. If you are having some problems, and maybe are not feeling quite ready for counseling, consider reading this book or another that you would feel more comfortable with.

The Five Love Languages was first published in 1992 and to be the number one best seller on the Christian book list says a lot. Perhaps some new strategies can shake up a stagnant Christian marriage and offer you new hope for the future.

Does the Barna report equate to Christian marriages having failed? What can we do to save a Christian marriage? Are there some Christian marriages that should not be saved?

Welcome to the June 15, 2008 edition of Her Christian Blog Carnival.

And what better way to start off our carnival on The Fruit of the Spirit then with a few messages sending us out as God did the disciples at Pentecost. Here are those messages from Crystal Nichols posted at Christian in the Corporate World.

Read Go! The Lord has gone ahead of you! Crystal says, “In Judges 4, Deborah was having a busy day. As the judge-prophetess for Israel, she was busy solving disputes for the people when God spoke to her.”

And in her message Faith in the Workplace: Planting Seeds she says, “One of the reasons I started this blog was because I have lot of trouble expressing my faith, especially at the office. The idea of “planting seeds” gives me a lot of encouragement and also scares me a little too! Make that a lot.”

Kathleen Gage presents A life can be changed by a few simple words posted at Daily Awareness, saying, “Words have power. How often have you heard this and yet, how true is it? Learn how one affirmation can change your life forever.”

Claudia Riley presents The Greatest Joy posted at Standing Straight.

Julie presents Living Green - Dominion and Stewardship of God’s Creation posted at M4K Parenting & Family Life.

Christopher Johnson with a wonderful idea to bring Christian’s together presents a message about a new site called His-Friends posted at christopheraaronjohnson.net, saying, “I need your help to build a Christian community where everyone can come to make friends, keep in contact with friends and family, and give and receive support and encouragement.”

Theresa L. Twogood at OLIN e-Book e-Publishing presents three reads for us with Turn Back Because, Big Picture Progressive Exposure and Daily Prayer Journal.

We also welcome our friends who would like to share their messages on Business, Finance, Politics and Other:

Big Larry presents Dealing with Debt Biblically posted at Holy Cash Cow, saying, “Being overwhelmed by debt doesn’t just exact a financial toll, but an emotional and spiritual one as well. Churches are rapidly becoming a crucial support system for those that find themselves financially over their heads.” This is a GREAT site, I hope you can check it out.

J. Karlin presents The Best Fundraising Idea posted at Marketing & Fundraising Ideas.

Michael Snyder presents The Picture Of The Hindu God That Barack Obama Carries For Good Luck posted at Shattered Paradigm.

Recoil presents Pavlina Says Jesus was a Fictional Character posted at Double Barreled Opinions.

That concludes this edition. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Yesterday we heard from Mike Walsh on his post “Dear Christian” and I think while there are many points to argue, my message is not about arguing. As God’s servants we are called to facilitate the work of God in many different ways. Also as God’s servants we are all one in the same a Christian, each with a background from a multitude of beliefs.

What we are not is perfect. We are all sinners and perhaps maybe some have a bit more sin in them then others, but sin is sin. There are those we could even question as to whether or not they are real Christians based on their actions but we know that we are not to judge.

Having patience seems core in living with others, Christian and otherwise. I also am of the belief that the wrongs of one do not necessarily represent or take away from the good of others in a group. I would no sooner generalize all Christians as evil or hating as I would Muslims.

I’m concerned with the generalizations of missionaries. There are missions too numerous to name that have facilitated giving regardless of a person’s belief system, in the name of God, not to force God on anyone, but to do a true service for God. I would not consider the actions of Mother Theresa, Amy Carmichael, Dr. Albert Schweitzer just to name a few, anything perpetrated by an “evil group of humans.” These people are the very essence of patience, people who made great sacrifices in their lives so others could live a better life.

In using missionaries as an example, it is quite appropriate to note in our study of patience that we are all missionaries of one sort or another and yesterday’s post has one incredible point that Christians should consider. In the bible we are directed not to send any away from the fold. Our actions sometimes speak louder than our words, and to do more than what God has equipped each of us for can sometimes send another away from God.

As such we have to have patience and represent our Christianity through our actions and words. We should feel that we’ve touched others in a positive way. Mike said it simply:

If God is the truth, He will find me. Don’t sell Him to me.

I ain’t buying.

I can’t say it any plainer; God knows when each will come into the fold. We don’t need to sell Mike anything. We have to remember it’s free for all and if we live a good life and share the fruit of the Spirit and are patient in sharing God with others by how we live, act and speak, then all will see what a Christian life can be about. It is not always about TV evangelism or beating down doors. It is having an open door and an open heart to all you come in contact with.

Have you been giving the tough sell to your family, friends or co-workers about being a Christian? Have you lost patience with them or they with you over the discussion of religion?