And the greatest of these...

Faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. At the risk of being cliche, I feel compelled to write about love on Valentines day. The bible refers to love as the greatest of faith, hope and love. I find this interesting when most of us see the bible as a manual for faith, written to give us hope, that talks about love. But I contend that that assumption is wrong.

Is the bible not the greatest love story ever written? Is is not an epic novel full of trails, tribulations, sadness, and triumph? Is not it a great love story about our creator and his undying love for us. It is a manual for us to learn how to love. As you can not tell me human nature is to love our enemies as ourselves. I wish that came naturally to me, but it doesn't. The bible teaches us how to love. Why, because our God is a loving god and he wants us to know his greatest gift.

Our love for a child is like none other, we value them ahead of ourselves. But that is a love that comes naturally to us, one that takes no initial effort. But we were created with this innate desire to find our partner. From adolescence on we search high and low looking for that one special someone for whom we feel at home.

It is in this place that we find the desire to voluntarily surrender ourself and feel that divine comfort. It is not an easy place to get to, in fact some never do. It comes at a hugh risk, as to find it you must risk you innermost self. Once found, it is not easily maintained, it takes a concentrated effort of continual surrender. But in that place of love provided as nugget from God, we can truly find glimpses of heaven and the love God, our father, has for us.

The book of 1 Corinthians 11:11-12 says "In the Lord, however, woman is not independent of man, nor is man independent of woman. For as woman came from man, so also man is born of woman. But everything comes from God."

So as we ponder how much we love and as we feel loved, let us remember to be grateful for this gift and give more of ourselves,as we know that we will receive far more than we ever give.

Yhea God!

Hold Strong

As the economy weakens and we all feel the pinch. Hold strong to you christian values. It is easy to get side tracked by the fear of upheaval. But remember that the Lord has promised to be with us ALWAYS and to provide for our every need. He is faithful to this. Where we get caught is that our every desire and our materialistic tendencies are not always in convergence with our Heavenly Fathers definition of needs.

Does God care that we have to down-size, I believe so, in that he hates to see us unhappy. I figure this is much the same for him as it is for us to watch out kids learn some of life's tough lessons. It is not that he cares about our life style, but he does care about our life and all that encompasses it.

It is times such as these though, where we become vulnerable to the serious temptations. Divorce rates rise, domestic violence increases as do alcoholism and many other wanton practices as we try to self medicate our souls. The problem lies in that it is not our souls that are hurting, but our human egos and insecurities that are coming into full bloom. It is these time that we need to rely on faith and the scriptures to pull us through.

Hear oh Israel, trust in the Lord your God with all you mind, all your body, all your soul and all of your strength. That verse says it all. The shema, from early on in the old testament to right this second those words have been applicable. Never doubt, have faith.

So what I am asking is that we all bow down as ask the Lord to provide what we NEED in these times and then rely on Him to come through. During all that, live your life in peace and do not let worry and strife destroy who you are. Love your family more, learn to enjoy again the small things and release your need for material goods. He is in control and these times are just a blip on the radar screen of eternity.

Yhea God!