Do You Love "You?"

Matthew 22:37-40 reads:

Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these

two commandments.”

Most of us have heard these words before, and we usually summarize it as ‘love God, love others.’ It’s how we love others, however, that we often miss.
The Message words it this way: 'Love others as well as you love yourself.' This calls for some serious self-reflection. In what areas do you truly love yourself, and are there areas that are somewhat undesirable? Here’s a great quote from

well-known author, Norman Vincent Peale:

“It is of practical value to learn to like yourself. Since you must spend so much time with yourself you might as well get some satisfaction out of the relationship.”

Simply put, we cannot be any more pleasant or caring to others than we can be to ourselves. Limiting our potential…potentially limits how much God will use us.
This week, may you truly love and believe in yourself so you

can be the love of God to your neighbor.

Daddy's Lap

Proverbs 18:10 reads:

The name of the Lord is a strong fortress; the godly run to him and are safe.


Names. Everybody’s got one. We either like what our parents named us, or we wish that we could change our name to something else…and some do! Onomatology is the study of names. Do you know what your name means? Mine (Brent) is from a Celtic word meaning ‘from the hill.’ Now, maybe I tend to read into things like this a little too much, but a couple questions come to mind. First, what ‘hill’ is being referred to? And second, what was the first Brent doing on that hill? See…random thoughts.

For those of us who believe in God and have given our lives over to Him, the scripture passage above offers tremendous hope and security. What’s in a name? Simply put…the name of God is our home base…our safe zone…our Daddy’s lap. Additionally, when we take a look at all of God’s names in the Bible it quickly becomes apparent that He is much more than that. He really is our everything.
So for this week, may you find safety, rest, and comfort sitting on the knee of your Heavenly Father. May you also feel His strong, loving arms embrace you as your child-like grin touches His heart.

The Last Word

Proverbs 16:1-3 from The Message reads:

“Mortals make elaborate plans, but God has the last word. Humans are satisfied with whatever looks good; God probes for what is good. Put God in charge of your work, then what you've planned will take place.”


Do you believe that today…does God truly have the last word? Have you ever put tons of energy and effort into getting certain plans just the way you want them…only to have God mess it all up? “How dare he! How could he do that with all my good intensions?” But here’s the problem with our ‘good intensions’ most of the time. We have zero guarantee that any of it will succeed! Usually, the problem ends up being that we simply did not consult with God via prayer and reading of the Word in order to receive his blessing first. Once we have that we can be assured that we’re on the right track.
Now look at the other half of the above verses. Then, read this quote below by speaker and author, Leondard Sweet from his book, “Soul Tsunami.”

"The church is bursting at the seams with rationality, decency, order, dignity, and predictability. What it needs is the holy intoxications of foolishness, humor, craziness, outrageousness, creative disorder, and passion."

In relation to the church, God’s church, do you see any correlation between the Proverbs passage and Pastor Sweet’s statement? If so, what is it? Please email me or comment on the blog with your thoughts.
This week, may your plans be beautifully painted on the canvas of your ‘to do’ list…and may you allow God to hold the brush.

Who's The Boss?

Colossians 3:23 reads:

“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men.”

Labor Day…a time set aside for workers to rest and look back on their efforts and accomplishments. For some Americans, it’s the last extended weekend to get caught up on yard work and cleaning. For others, it’s the final opportunity to get out of town for a quick vacation before winter comes. Yet for others, it’s simply one more day to sleep in before the busy work week begins.

As I contemplated these thoughts on Monday, I began to think “What if Labor Day was a time for us to think about all the things we do for God?” Have you ever just taken a moment to consider all the time, creativity, and energy you’ve put into doing the Lord’s work? And can your daily ‘job’ possibly be doing the Lord’s work?

My encouragement for you this week is this: (1) Be bold enough to honestly ask God how He wants to use you. (2) Look for at least one chance to impact someone’s life each day…whether it’s covering 63 cents the person ahead of you is short at the store or tipping the waiter more than they deserve.

This week, may you see your labor and your activities as God sees them…opportunities to be a reflection of Jesus.

Remember your Anniversary?

Jeremiah 1:5 reads:

"Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations."

The reason this is getting posted a day late is that yesterday Cailey and I celebrated our wedding Anniversary. I thought that was a pretty good excuse for this week. Anyway, we had a great time celebrating 18+ years together. We took time to look back over the years and see how our relationship had grown and changed since the time we first met in high school. Then I made the observation that in just two more years we will have spent more of our lives together than before we met. But before 1988 our relationship was non-existent. We have no history prior to that year. Then I thought, well…our parents and siblings have those relationships prior to when we met. Only one person, however, precedes even our parents…and that’s God!

Before I ever had a chance to cry for my parents to comfort me, my God in Heaven knew everything about me. I believe this is why He longs to have a close relationship with us. He knows us so well, and He wants us to know Him too!

This week, may you take some time to remember your ‘Anniversary’ date: the moment that you began your relationship with God. And may you also see how it has changed over time. Wherever you are, He is still right there…waiting to reminisce with you…and to grow into tomorrow together!

Why don’t you take Him to coffee soon…maybe He will buy :)