“Allow not, the shallow intentions or vile aspirations of others to taint your heart; Love always. - With an abundance of positivity you will counter the negative, always.” ― Tiffany Luard
ISAIAH 62-64
8Yet you, Lord, are our Father.
We are the clay, you are the potter;
we are all the work of your hand. (64:8)
1 THESSALONIANS 5
12Now we ask you, brothers and sisters, to acknowledge those who work hard among you, who care for you in the Lord and who admonish you. 13Hold them in the highest regard in love because of their work. Live in peace with each other. 14And we urge you, brothers and sisters, warn those who are idle and disruptive, encourage the disheartened, help the weak, be patient with everyone. 15Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always strive to do what is good for each other and for everyone else.
Oh to truly live this way and to live in a community where everyone really took this to heart. I guess that is the hope...that is heaven come down to earth. This is what we live and put our hope in...that we would "rejoice always, pray continually...giving thanks in all circumstances."JOURNAL
Reading these words in Thessalonians makes me teary eyed. I long for a community in which this is truly lived out. As I turn inward I also realize how far I fall from these commands from Paul...yet I know in my heart that they are true and that this is the heart of God. But that is also why these words are given...because the world does not operate this way. In general the strong are rewarded, the weak are discarded...love is seen as a weakness, not a strength. Wrong is usually repaid and "good" is often a byproduct of selfishness and manipulation.
And that's precisely the point...we are called to be different, to be a light in the midst of darkness. That means that we as believers will be surrounded by darkness. Dang that just feels so daunting and impossible...and the more I dig into scripture I realize that acceptance of God's love and surrender to his will is promised to be accompanied by the actual presence and power of God. That means God is with me, that means God is the light that shines. Not my own. What an amazing promise!
I think the point is to surrender to Jesus always. For to seek him always creates the habit of living my life enveloped in his love. To do so creates a life of joy, hope and love. This then is worth sacrificing for...it is worth giving up my "rights"...because doing so gives me forgiveness and grace in all circumstances. No matter the outcome, no matter how the world perceives and judges my life, a life given to following Christ will be worth it because in the end...it's all that really matters.
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