Love Conquers All

As I reflect on my life, the only place I felt safe is when I felt love.  Love is a powerful weapon in the spiritual realms.  Love protects, it nurtures, it strengthens, and comforts.  Love Conquers ALL!  The very essence of everything I believe rests on God’s Love.  God’s love toward us is expressed by giving his life for us so that we could LIVE.  It is more divine than human Love because in human love, we find it difficult to even dare to die for a friend.  He died for us while we were sinners.  While we were nasty, rude, prideful, hateful, sneaky, and selfish.  He did not die when were were perfect in our love, for if that would be the case, there would be no need of a savior.  There would be no HOPE.  What would we being saved from, after all?  

In my bible, the KJV, which I use in my home, I see in 1 Corinthians a message of Charity.  In other versions it will say “LOVE”, but Charity is actually a deeper form of Love, it is defined as an UNLIMITED Love, or a Love with NO Bounds.

It wasn’t until very recently, did I ever feel the representation of this kind of love in a body of believers.  The moment I walked into the room where people were gathered, it hit me like a wave.  The love was thick.  It was real Charity.  Real Godly love.  Where love is the answer for all things, and in all things love is expressed, you have safety.  Sometimes you go to church and people are nice to you because they want you to join the church.  I am talking about something different.  Other churches you go and they purposely ignore you because they don’t want you to feel welcome.  They want you to be there only for the truth not because you look up to the people you are learning from.  That is messed up, if you ask me!  We should never get so high minded, we should always treat people the way we would want to be treated.  Just love them because God loves them.My whole family was treated with PURE LOVE.  I never in my life, experienced it.  I felt instantly in the spirit like I was a part of them.  Like I was HOME.  I was in the midst of a Godly people whose banner was LOVE.

FEAR and REJECTION…
Where there is not love, you have fear.  I was used to a different kind of spirit, that of suspicion and fear.  People were skeptical and they were afraid.  Everyone was a suspect.  Fear and Pride reigned.  The problem comes when people point fingers, fault find, condemn, accuse, and back bite.  In an environment where everything goes back to FEAR, I couldn’t bear it any longer.  I have been saved from it all and I just can’t live that kind of fear.  LOVE covers a multitude of sins.  I stand on that and that alone!  God is bigger than fear.  He will bring the prideful low and the the humble, He shall exalt.

For years I wondered if it was ME.  I simply cannot seem to avoid confrontation with certain people.  They will seek you out.  Like a lion to its prey.  They prey on you.  They will tell me I am immature, stupid, pathetic.  NEWs flash… I am NOTHING without Christ.  The only reason I can do anything is because of Christ in me the HOPE Of GLORY.  I have nothing of myself to boast of.

I would even have anxiety attacks at the thought of who was calling me for fear it was another attack from someone upon one of my children or upon our family.   Every encounter ends with some accusation or observation of your life.   I can’t even tell you the fear I would have.  I would cower like a dog in a corner and just take the abuse.  And somehow certain people would just seem to enjoy the POWER that they could have over me.  I had to come to the realization that I GAVE them that kind of power.  My husband always told me that because I elevated others above myself, tried to make them feel like they were so amazing, they would often take that position I gave them as a license to push me down way beneath them.  Some people actually enjoy kicking the dog while it is down.  In my hen house, I can see all the chickens love to pick on or PECK on the weak one in the coop.  We get treated the way we allow ourselves to be treated.  I accepted this as just the way people are.  But really, it is the way people always are or was I just around a lot of narcissistic folks?  That is the true question.

That is what I was accustomed to for many years.  I was forever being careful what I say for what I say can be used against me.   Being transparent was not a safe place because in so doing, I would be giving a license for people to judge me again and again.  Rejection was something I have always learned to deal with.  I knew that people use you, abuse you, and then throw you out eventually.  I learned to become withdrawn from people, careful, and alone because it was the only way to feel love or safe. When we stay home and our home is filled with love, we can draw it from one another and from God.  Many Christians have been in this spot where they needed to draw to themselves just to preserve the only love they know and that is in their home.  That is a love that can edify.

​BUT here is the thing… What people think is more about them than me.  Each person has to give an account for how they treat others.  The freedom for me is that God is the ultimate judge.  There no need to fear!  I am FREE of it because God sees the heart of man.  All I need to do is my part.  LOVE.  HONOR.  BE KIND.  BE MERCIFUL.  TREAT OTHERS THE WAY I WOULD WANT TO BE TREATED.  That is it.  I do my part and then I am FREE.  I can’t answer for others.  That is all any of us can do.  WE are in control of our part.  You have no idea the FREEDOM there is with this!  OH how I love it.  I love LOVING other in Christ.  It makes my heart happy!

The body is supposed to gather together to edify.  The purpose of the church is to proclaim and project the love of Christ onto others.  I find it very critical to observe the exhortation of our Lord and Savior…
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There is none other commandment greater than these!  Yet, I have found this to be a very hard commandment for believers in Christ to keep.  It seems that it is hard for people to get along or to really treat others the way that they would want to be treated.  It is a simple command, yet so foreign to many people.  IT IS EASY to be NICE!
Here is a simple step by step instruction of how to LOVE your NEIGHBOR…

1. Look at a person.
2. Stop for a moment and remember how much Christ LOVEs them!
3. Pray for them.
4. Imagine they are YOU.
5. Treat them just like you would want to be treated.

Isn’t that simple????

So if they do something you do not like.

1. Remember you are not perfect either.
2. Overlook their faults just the way you want them to overlook your faults which are many.
3. LOVE them through their imperfections.
4. Agree to disagree when needed.
5. Realize whatever the offense, it is your choice to BE OFFENDED.
6. CHOOSE LOVE.  Be Patient.  Be Merciful!

Perfect LOVE casts out fear. 
Perfect LOVE casts out fear.  What is there to fear when there is love between one another?  If they do have something to say, it is so gentle and out of pure love for you.  There will be no fear sweeping over you when they call upon you.  When someone truly loves you they do not put themselves on a higher ground than you.  It took me 40 years of living to understand this. I always felt that I must have done something bad to deserve the treatment that I received from others.

I have learned to stay away from certain people.  If you are not around them, the misery, the FEAR, and drama ceases.  As much as it goes against my grain of LOVING others and having grace to forgive and overlook things, there are times when you can’t live peaceably with others.  This verse says, AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE, and AS much as you are able with all your heart!  Sometimes peace can not be established no matter how hard you try.  There is a time for healing.  And when you have been wounded, if you keep being around those that mean to overpower you, control you, demean you, the wound just keeps getting torn open.

I had a victim mentality.  
I have had to overcome a lot in my life because of being a perpetual victim from my youth.  It can get engrained and keep a person enslaved.  Christ did not die for me to be a slave.  He died that I could break free of it, learn to overcome and to help set others who struggle—FREE.That is the beauty of God’s LOVE.  We can go through hard times, we can cry out to our LORD, and after he carries us through, we will have the strength to help carry other’s burdens because we have been shown such grace and mercy.  Such a beautiful gift that keeps on giving.  I know how to comfort those that feel the pains of rejection or the hurt of other’s words.  I know how to comfort because Jesus first comforted me.  I know who I am in Christ, and I know how to show that same confidence to others who struggle to find who they are and why they are here.  God has a beautiful plan, ALWAYS.  He makes beauty from ashes, and oil for mourning.  His grace is sufficient!LOVE IS A HEALING BALM…
I am around a lot of other people that I never have any trouble with.  No accusations.  No drama.  Just love.  People who love their neighbors as themselves tend to overlook other people’s faults because they also know that they are not perfect.  It is a choice that we all face.  We can look at what people are doing or we can overlook what people do in Love.  It is a testament of Jesus when we treat others the way we would want to be treated.  Just as we would rather that people not focus on our faults we should not focus on other’s faults.

The love a person shows to another is as a HEALING BALM.  It cleans the wound and protects it.  It nourishes and gives it all the right properties in order to heal.  I am big into teaching others about GUT health and if you can get rid of those things that are attacking the gut, the gut will have a chance to heal.  Same in life.

LOVE changes HISTORY…
​My life is changed.  I respond to the spirit of what I am surrounded by.  History has been made and I feel so free.  The love I am surrounded by is so PURE and so KINDhearted, I THRIVE!  My family THRIVES in it.  I learned so much in these past 4 months than I have learned about the commandment to LOVE in all the years of my life.  It is just so profound to me that LOVE is the thing makes all the difference in all the world.I have been encouraged so much by the fellowship I am near to be in God’s word daily.  I have my special, very humble prayer closet now.  It is my humble bathroom.  I have an old milk stool sitting at the foot of the earthly throne with my BIBLE laying across it.  I drink lots of water each day, not only to keep my body running at its best, but also to get my washing of the WORD.  It keeps me in the bathroom more often this way, so each time I sit, I can see God’s word before me.  I can read a chapter each time, I can pray for others, and draw near to my Savior.  It is when I come before HIS mighty throne is the most plain and simple way.It has been my life giving bread each moment I sit in silence before my KING.  As His humble, broken vessel.  A vessel that just looks worthless to the world.  But to God, his glorious LIGHT shines out of the cracks and it spills living water all over the ground and onto anyone I am so blessed to know.  God does the watering.  He is the light giver, the strength when we are weak.  He is the one that draws us up and carries us across the valleys of life.  In grief.  In sorrow.  In pain.  In rejection.  In loss.  In offenses.  In abuse.  He is always there, ready to pick up the pieces, put us back together again, and make us a worthy vessel to His glory!  And I am thankful that I do not have to be ready as a perfectly shining vessel.  That my cracks, my failed attempts to be something of value, my imperfections are why HE is made PERFECT.  He is made perfect in our weakness.

This is the Power of Christ in us…