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“Beloved, let us love
one another; for love is of God; and every one that
loveth is born of God, and knoweth god. He that loveth
not knoweth not God; for God is love” (1 John 4:7).
Most of us will never
forget our first love. Whether it was someone in grade
school, high school or college, we always remember their
name and how they looked. Every time you think about
them you kind of smile at the sweet innocent love you
had for that individual. Later in life, when we start
dating we always try to be on our best behavior. We
strive to be polite and courteous; we wouldn’t dream of
losing our patience or our tempers. When you’re out on
a date and you’re down to the last slice of pizza, you
offer it to your date first even though you’re hungry.
Then, several dates down the road, you offer to cut the
last slice in two so that you both can share it. After
you’re married, forget about it; you just about smack
their hand out of the way; that last piece has your
name written all over it, and it’s every man for
himself.
We as Christians relate
this with the way we feel when we first give our hearts
to Jesus. Our hearts are afire with a zeal to work for
Him, to try and repay Him for all that He has done for
us. We strive to read His Word and to pray every day so
that we can be closer to Him. We really want to give
our all to Him and wouldn’t dream of missing a service.
But all too often those feelings fade with time. Soon
it seems that we can’t find the time to pray, let alone
read His Word. We find ourselves drifting away and ill
equipped to deal with the every day struggles. How can
we stop this process from happening? Is it possible to
keep that “First Love” feeling alive?
Let’s be honest; it’s
impossible to feel the same way all the time. We are,
after all, human beings and we’re by no means perfect.
But there are things we can do the stir up that “First
Love” feeling within us.
Sometimes we need to be
reminded of just how much Jesus loves us. Sometimes we
need to look back and remember where we were without Him
in our lives. Sometimes we need to just sit back and
realize just how awesome God really is. Who but God
could love us so much that He would send His only Son to
die in our place? Who but Jesus would love us so much
that He would lay His life down so that we could have
salvation? When you think about all He’s done, who He
really is and really feel the depth of His love, how
could we not love Him?
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I was
guilty of all charges, doomed and dismayed.
But Jesus
with His precious love, He pleaded my case.
He
pleaded, and pleaded, He pleaded my case.
Jesus
dropped the charges, Jesus dropped the
charges,
Jesus
dropped the charges, and now I’m free by
love and grace.
He
dropped the charges, Jesus dropped the
charges.
Cast them
all away.
He
dropped the charges, Jesus dropped the
charges.
He
changed my night to day.
He picked
me up; He turned me ‘round.
He gave
me a brand new song.
At
Calvary I heard Him say, At Calvary I heard
Him say,
“Case
dismissed! Case dismissed!”
I’m saved
by grace.
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Love is….
If you were to look up
the word “love” in the dictionary, you would find that
it says a profoundly tender affection for another
person, a feeling of warm attachment or deep affection.
It would also say a lot of other things. But love
really isn't that easy to define. It’s more than just
affection; it’s more than just a tender attachment.
Love is gentle,
Love is kind,
Love is strong,
Love is true,
Love is not proud,
Love is not boastful,
Love is patient,
Love is hopeful,
Love never fails,
“Many waters cannot
quench love; Neither can the floods drown it” (Song of
Solomon 8:7).
Used by permission of
Billie Grubbs |
