This is Love

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life

John 3:16

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It wasn't nails that held Him to the tree. It was the silver cords of love and the golden bonds of redemption that held Jesus Christ to that cross

excerpt from Love Worth Living, Adrian Rogers

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You can love your fellow man without loving Christ, but you cannot love Christ without loving your fellow man. Whether you are worshiping the Lord or washing the feet of a bum on skid row, it is sacred and holy work if it is done out of love for the Lord

excerpt from Quiet Walk, Crosswalk.com

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1 John 4:10 - This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.

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For I remember it is Easter morn, And life and love and peace are all new born.

~Alice Freeman Palmer

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Let the resurrection joy lift us from loneliness and weakness and despair to strength and beauty and happiness. ~Floyd W. Tomkins

God's Cake

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose

Romans 8:28

Sometimes we wonder, 'What did I do to deserve this?' or 'Why did God have to do this to me?' Here is a wonderful explanation!

A daughter is telling her Mother how everything is going wrong, she's failing algebra, her boyfriend broke up with her and her best friend is moving away. Meanwhile, her Mother is baking a cake and asks her daughter if she would like a snack, and the daughter says, 'Absolutely Mom, I love your cake.'
'Here, have some cooking oil,' her Mother offers. 'Yuck' says her daughter. 'How about a couple raw eggs?' 'Gross, Mom!' 'Would you like some flour then? Or maybe baking soda?' 'Mom, those are all yucky!' To which the mother replies: 'Yes, all those things seem bad all by themselves. But when they are put together in the right way, they make a wonderfully delicious cake!' God works the same way.
Many times we wonder why He would let us go through such bad and difficult times. But God knows that when He puts these things all in His order, they always work for good! We just have to trust Him and, eventually, they will all make something wonderful! God is crazy about you. He sends you flowers every spring and a sunrise every morning. Whenever you want to talk, He'll listen. He can live anywhere in the universe, and He chose your heart.

Take a walk this week enjoying the beauty of God's creation and ask Him to give you the patience and faith that can turn a little acorn into a mighty oak.

Love Worth Finding,

Adrian Rogers www.lwf.org

Fresh Starts

Each day is a storehouse given you

Fresh every morn from God's hand;

Do you stop to think of this

When at its door you stand?

Twenty-four empty, waiting hours,

All ready for you to fill with

Worthwhile thoughts and worthwhile deeds

And service, if you will.

You're given a chance to store

Away treasures of love and joy,

And satisfaction of work well done

That time cannot destroy.

So put your best into all your day

With eyes opened wide to see, and

Eager hands stretched out to grasp

Each opportunity.

Unknown

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God knows we need fresh starts. He gently (and frequently) reminds us throughout Scripture to take things one day at a time. "Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble,” says Matthew 6:34. Fretting doesn’t accomplish anything anyway (aside from deepening those frown lines).

God commands us to give others fresh starts, too. We’re to forgive our fellow human beings when they hurt us, not seven times, but seventy times seven. And when we forgive, we don’t keep track of the count, so the idea is to keep forgiving, just like God keeps forgiving us.

Read more from LeeAnn Bonds

http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art30128.asp