Do Overs

We get no do overs in life, but sometimes we need that do over in little things within our lives. I started months ago on a Joyce Meyers Daily Devotional Plan with YouVersion.com. However, I fell away from the habit of reading my bible every day. However, I will never quit starting over until I get this right and stay on the track I should have been on all along. So today I am starting a "Do Over". I am restarting my Joyce Meyers devotional reading and will attempt to remain faithful.

John 14:23  Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.


I don't believe that we ever lose God's presence in our lives, but we can get to the point where we can't feel Him with us anymore. When that happens, when we've lost the feeling of God's presence it is really difficult to get that communion with Him back. Harder than it was to lose Him in the first place. We can lose our fellowship with God by mere thoughtlessness, but to get it back we must make conscious decisions to make the right choices, say the right things, forgive all offenses (those of self and others), and live life prayerfully. It takes work, but it's worth it for the peace that can only be gained by having God in our lives. I am truly thankful that God loves me, lives within my heart, and forgives me all my trespasses. Without that, I would have nothing.

The second plan I feel God has led me to is called "What is Love?" also on YouVersion.com. I truly feel I need to learn what love really is. It is something I never learned the true definition of as an adult. If I learn the truth of God's love, I can then learn how to love others the way He would like me to.

I John 4:16 16 And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.

What does it mean that God is love? God is the ultimate definition of love. Love is His core attribute. As described in the bible in I Corinthians 13:4-8 Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out.
Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.
Prophecy and speaking in unknown languages and special knowledge will become useless. But love will last forever!

These are powerful descriptive of what love is, how it reacts (or doesn't react) to circumstances in life. If we love as God loves us, this is the way we will love. Moreover, you can replace every reference to love with God in those verses and you have an accurate picture of who God is. 

However, to me the most powerful words are in I Corinthians 13:1-3  If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn’t love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God’s secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn’t love others, I would be nothing.
If I gave everything I have to the poor and even sacrificed my body, I could boast about it;t but if I didn’t love others, I would have gained nothing. 

These are not words of love's description. These are words of how useless our lives and actions are without love. How useless our lives are without God. 

What does it mean to put your trust in God's love? I trust in the love of God that He has saved me from an eternity without Him. There is no trust more ultimate than that. But, I also trust Him for my daily life. I trust He will never lead me down a path that I can't handle because He loves me. I trust he will always forgive me when I make mistakes and bad decisions because He loves me. I can trust in God's love because it is without end and without limit. He is love, therefore His love can never wear out. It is what He is.