This blog was inspired by reading one of my daily devotionals last night before bed. The title of it was this: Lovest Thou Me? When I began reading that, it really made me start to think long and hard about the decisions I've made in the past and present, then the question of "How many of us really love Jesus popped into my head. A lot of people say that they love Jesus, but in reality they don't really. If they really loved Him then they wouldn't have gone about their daily lives sinning left and right. I know I should practice what I preach because I'm not perfect, nobody is. All I really want to do is be happy and content with what I have rather than what I don't have. Know what I mean? Without God, I would have never been able to be who I am today rather than the way I was back then. So,thank God for that! Anyway, while I was reading Romans 5: 2-11, I began thinking more about my love that I have for Jesus and I'm questioning myself, Do I really love Him? If I really love Him then I wouldn't have made all of these terrible decisions in the past and present. I'll admit that it's incredibly hard to be a full on follower of Jesus, but like I always say, in the end it is always worth it. We all fall sometimes, but if it wasn't for God and Jesus, then we wouldn't be able to pick ourselves back up and go about our daily lives as strong believers of Christ. When we fall, God picks us back up and holds us in His arms and tells us that it will all be okay and not to worry, because he's taking care of everything, it just takes His perfect timing. So, please be patient and wait upon the Lord.
In verses 2-5 it says this " By whom also we have access by faith into His grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the Glory of God. And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; and patience, experience; and experience, hope: and hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the holy ghost which is given unto us." In other words, faith, hope,and love are at the heart of your christian life. Our relationship with God begins with faith, which can help us realize that we are delivered from our past by Christ's death. Hope grows as we learn all that God has in mind for us; it gives us the promise of the future. And God's love fills our lives and gives us the ability to reach out to others and pull them in closer toward the Lord, because whether they know it or not, they desperately need the Lord. This whole entire world needs the Lord, this world is like a living hell. None of us want to be here any longer, this world is just a big, sad mess and it needs major help from the Lord. None of us even belong down here on this world, we belong in God's world which is probably full of love and happiness and ya know what? I can't wait until I get to go there sometime soon. God is not finished with me yet down here on earth, He put me here to try and help out others by pulling them in closer to the Lord and I've been trying, and let me tell ya, it isn't an easy task at all. It's a major pain in the butt, but I do it anyway because that is what the Lord wants me to do with my time down here on earth.
In verses 3-4 it says that for first century christians, suffering was the rule rather than the exception. Paul tells us that in the future we will become, but until then we must overcome. To overcome means that all of these experiences that we're going through may be difficult but it's the difficulties that help us grow. "Glory in tribulations" means to rejoice in suffering. We rejoice in suffering, not because we like pain or deny it's tragedy, but because we know God is using your life's difficulties and Satan's attacks to build your character. The problems that we face will develop into our patience- which in turn will strengthen our character, deepen our trust in God, and give us greater confidence about the future. You probably find your patience being tested in some way every single day of your lives. You should be thanking God for those opportunities to grow, and deal with in his strength. None of us know what the future holds, but when we get to the future it will be the best thing that has ever happened to us' and I am very excited to see what the future holds not only for myself, but for my family,friends,job situations,our church, etc. It's actually really cool to think about. So for your own good please stop dwelling about your past and help God and yourself with your future. The future is yours, so lets make it happen! I am ready, are you?
In verses 5-6, it's saying this: " and hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the holy ghost which is given unto us. For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for us the ungodly." In other words it's saying that All three members of the Trinity are involved in salvation. The Father loved us so much that he sent His son to bridge the Gap between us. The Father and the Son send the Holy Spirit to fill our lives with love and to enable us to live by His power. With all this loving care, how can we do less than serve Him completely! We were helpless because we could do nothing on our own to save our lives. So,someone had to come and put a complete stop to it. Christ came at exactly the right time in history-according to God's own schedule. God controls all of history, and he controlled the timing, method,and events that surrounded Jesus' death. God's timing is always perfect, so we need to be patient, even though a lot of the time none of us have patience to deal with anything. I've had my fair share of dealing with rude people,and quite frankly, I'm sick of dealing with rude people, they just completely ruin my day. There are some days when I just want to scream and set certain people straight, but I don't because I know that God is taking care of them and their own lives. So, God is telling me to stop looking at other people's lives and start looking at my own, and do something about it. I go out on a limb to help people out, but I barely receive anything in return, so I wonder why I even bother with things like that. It's clearly pointless and I shouldn't ever expect anything in return,even though I do a lot of the time, but I shouldn't. I just need to stop with it and start focusing on my God,my family, and myself. It's just not worth it for me to keep dealing with other people's crap. Enough is enough! Time to move on! I am done!
In verses 8-11 it's saying this: " But God commendeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement." In different words it's telling us that God sent Jesus Christ to die for us, not because we were good enough, but because He loved us so incredibly much. Whenever you feel uncertain about God's love for you, remember that He loved you way before you even turned to Him. The love that caused Christ to die is the same love that sends the Holy Spirit to live in us and guide us every single day. The power that raised Christ from the dead is the same power that saved you and is available to you in your daily life. Be assured that, having begun a life with Christ, you have a reserve of power and love to call on each day for help to meet every challenge or trial that you might have to face. You can pray for God's strength and love as you need it. God is holy, and He will not be associated with sin. All people are sinful, and all sin deserves punishment. But instead of punishing us with the death that we deserve, however, Christ took our sins upon himself and paid the price for them with His own death. Now we can "joy in God." Through faith in His work, we become His friends rather than being His enemies and outcasts.
A lot of the time I question God's love for me, even though I really shouldn't. But every time I'm questioning God's love, I always end up praying and talking to Him about my feelings for all the crap that I've done and how He always makes me feel better and comforted by just being in His presence and becoming good friends with Him. He's my heavenly father and he's like my best friend. I just wish that more people would come to Christ and be good friends with Him just like I am and several others are. The sooner the people do that, the better off they'll all be. It's definitely worth it, so just take that first step and do it! The first step is always the hardest, but the sooner that you take that first step, the much happier this world will be. Don't be afraid, just do it, he's ready and waiting. I want you all to know that no matter how big your problems are, God can handle it. He's working in you all as we speak. Stop living in the darkness and come into the beautiful light of the Lord, you'll be glad that you did. To conclude this blog entry, I just want to say a quick prayer to God, will you all please join me? "Dear God, thank you for all that you've done and will continue to do, please bring peace,serenity,joy,love, and happiness into the people's lives that need it most, help them to rejoice in you and turn away from their old ways,and let them be content with what they have and not wanting more. They should want more of you, God, not more of anything else. Please help them to rid them of their selves and help them to do good and be good,please be with those who don't know you yet and pull them in closer to you, so that they can have this amazing relationship with you, like I do and my church does. Thank you,Lord, I love you, Amen." Well goodnight and May God bless you all.
