“Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”
Romans 12:21
(This photo was taken in the fall of 2014 while driving on the north coast of Maui)
love
Continue To Increase
“His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.
For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
2 Peter 1:3-8
(This photo was taken in the fall of 2014 while driving the north coast of Maui)
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Put On Love
“Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.”
Colossians 3:12-14
(This photo was taken in the fall of 2014 at the Nakalele Blowhole located in the northern part of Maui)
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Our Top Priorities
“Teacher which of these is the greatest commandment in the Law? 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. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments’.”
Matthew 22:36-40
(This photo was taken in the summer of 2013 while climbing Pike’s Peak in Colorado)
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Love…Words vs Actions
It is one thing to say the following words about Love but it is a whole other level of Love to live them in your daily life with others…
“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.”
1 Corinthians 13:4-7
(This photo was taken by my wife in South Dakota and that is our son standing on a level above her to project his shadow in the image of the cross)
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Our Strength Is In Him
“Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.”
Isaiah 40:28-31
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All We Need Is Love
We often tend to make life much more complex and complicated and when we feel overwhelmed and stressed or filled with anxiety and worry…that is the time to stop and change our focus to the love of Christ to help renew our minds.
Paul writes to the Ephesians…
“I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge-that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.”
Ephesians 3:16-19
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A Christmas Message
Hope, Peace, Joy, Love and Christ
As I sit in the glow of lights from our tree I think back to Christmas time when I was a child. As a kid I enjoyed the lights, the music and family gatherings and of course, the presents. As I and my faith have grown I realize that Christmas is the time of year that I really began to connect with my faith. As an adult in the mind and a kid at heart I still enjoy the lights, the music and the family gatherings…I now enjoy the giving of gifts far more than receiving. Where we live I enjoy the snow (most years) and even the cold. The change of season is natural, to me it is God showing us his love using nature. All that was alive in summer has passed on but it will all be reborn in springtime. The world is covered in fresh new snow and we see angels in different forms everywhere. Most of all it seems to be the one time of year that people actually live life at a slower pace and often take time to recognize Jesus Christ and his coming into the world.
At Christmas time I pray we see and feel a sense of…
Hope – God made a promise to you and everyone to love you and to never leave you…believe him and trust him with every area of your life.
Peace – Be content when your basic needs are fulfilled and share with others if you have been blessed with abundance…practice patience.
Joy – Wear a smile more often and make an effort to help others find their smile…focus on the positive as often as you can.
Love – Life is more about how you treat others than how they treat you…you can’t control what others will think, say or do so why waste time worrying about it…do all that you can do with love.
At Christmas time this year put Christ in the center of your life…with Christ you will know Hope, you will know Peace, you will know Joy and you will know that the Love of Christ in your heart will help you overcome anything this world can throw at you.
May we all see and know God’s blessings in our lives this Christmas and carry them with us all through the New Year!
Merry Christmas!
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Hope, Peace, Joy, Love and Christ
Reflecting on the season and all that goes on in our lives…I have always been a Christmas guy. As a kid I enjoyed the lights, the music and family gatherings and of course the presents. As I and my faith have grown I realize that Christmas was the starting point for me to really deepen my faith. As an adult in mind and a kid at heart I still enjoy the lights, the music and the family gatherings…I now enjoy the giving far more than any receiving of presents. Where we live I enjoy the snow and even the cold. The change of season is natural to me it is God showing us his love using nature. All that was alive in summer has passed on but it will all be reborn in springtime. With the shorten daylight we set up lights to add color to the white world. But most of all it seems to be the one time of year that the most people in the world actually recognizes Jesus Christ and his coming into the world.
At Christmas time I pray you see and feel a sense of…
Hope – God made a promise to you and everyone to love you and to never leave you…believe him and trust him with every area of your life.
Peace – Be content when your basic needs are fulfilled and share with others if you have been blessed with abundance…practice patience.
Joy – Wear a smile more often and make an effort to help others find their smile…focus on the positive in any situation.
Love – Life is more about how you treat others than how they treat you…you can’t control what others will think, say or do so don’t waste time worrying about it…do all that you do with love.
At Christmas time put Christ in the center of your life…with Christ you will know Hope, you will know Peace, you will know Joy and you will know that the Love of Christ in your heart will help you overcome anything this world can throw at you.
May you see and know God’s blessings in your life this Christmas and carry them with you all through the New Year!
Merry Christmas!
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Life by the Spirit…Self-Control
It does not surprise me that this is the last thing listed in the Galatians 5:22-23 writing about the Fruit of the Spirit…why? Because as with all aspects of faith it all comes back to us…our attitude, our perspective and most of all our choices. We are blessed with free will, free to choose how we will act in this world.
Free to choose Love or hate
Free to choose Joy or sadness
Free to choose Peace or fighting
Free to choose Patience or hurriedness
Free to choose Kindness or be mean
Free to choose Goodness or cruelty
Free to choose Faithfulness or distraction
Free to choose Gentleness or be unbalanced
Free to choose to use the Fruits of the Spirit using Self-Control
Our guide for all of this is Jesus. God sent him so that reconciliation with God is always available. He loves us and wants us to choose to love him. Self-Control is not easy, I know from experience and I struggle with it as much as anyone.
Getting better at Self-Control is a choice in itself…it is choosing to live a healthy life style. Start by doing devotions in the morning and/or at night every day. Make those 5-10 minutes a priority and be quiet and calm with the Word every day. Given time it will help…then look at how you are physically caring for yourself…be sure you are eating regularly, getting rest and sleep and take a walk for exercise. When you feel things are out of control stop and pray. All of this is possible for anyone; it does not take a large financial investment just commitment. I know how the world we live in will try to distract and dissuade you from continuing…don’t quit. Even when you fall down and feel like you are failing, God is still right there saying “I understand, my own Son experienced frustration and temptation in the world. You are forgiven.”
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.”
Galatians 5:22-26
I pray we all we seek to live using the Fruits of the Spirit in all we do every day.
Take a look at the picture above one more time…choose to see what is on the other side through that opening…
May God’s Peace be with you
Take Your Faith With You 