Our church small group just finished a six-week study of "The Relationship Principles of Jesus" by Tom Holladay, teaching pastor at Saddleback Church. It was a fantastic study about Jesus' commandments to love Him with all our heart, mind and soul; and to love each other as we love ourselves.
My favorite excerpt from the study is a scripture: Romans 12:1 from The Message:
"Take your everyday, ordinary life - your sleeping, eating, going-to-work and walking-around life - and place it before God as an offering."
I also liked this excerpt: "The goal of love is not some false ideal we've conjured up in our minds; the goal of love is SEEING GOD AT WORK in our real lives. . . Ask God to help you to love in a new kind of way. Stop waiting for some ideal vision to come true in your life and just begin to love. Love now!"
The book also suggested writing the following words on a postcard to remind ourselves about humility:
"Humility is not thinking less of myself; it is thinking more of others.
Humility is not putting myself down; it is lifting God up.
Humility is not denying my strengths; it is being openly honest about my weaknesses.
Humility is seeing that without Christ I can do nothing, but in Christ I can do all things!"
We don't need to FEEL humble to ACT humbly. If we waited to FEEL like showing mercy or grace, or study the Word, pray, etc., many of us, myself included, wouldn't actually do those things. God calls us to do such simple things: visit the sick and imprisoned; feed/clothe the poor; love one another; spread the Gospel, pray, spend time with Him. He equips us for these very things. He has prepared in advance good works for us to do. He encourages us to not be weary in well doing. He gives us talents, not to build some kind of an altar around but to use while we share the Gospel, visit the sick and imprisoned, feed and clothe the poor and love one another. God is faithful to provide those opportunities.
In other words, don't let excuses keep you from God's commandments. You may be busy; it may make you feel uncomfortable; or you may even say God hasn't called you to do such and such. Do it anyway! What blessings we miss when we try to limit God's work with our own idea of how our talents should be used.
Hope this is an encouragement to you today. We will never be perfect on our own to do what God has called us to do; but with Him we are completely equipped to love Him with all our heart, mind and soul, and to love each other as we love ourselves.
God bless! Cindy
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