Are You Believing Lies About Love?

The meaning of love is one of the most philosophized questions in life.

With a society that defines love as personal desire, lust, and irrational feelings, it only fosters pain and heartache to an already self-absorbed and broken society.

But the Bible tells us that God is love (1 John 4:8). Knowing this, we can discern all the lies about love and replace them with truths:

Love is not romance.
Love is not a feeling.
Love is not attraction.
Love doesn’t have preferences.
It is not reserved for our family or people that we like.
Love is for everyone, even our worst of enemies.
Love can be hard. It doesn’t always feel pleasant.
Love is not deserved and can never be earned.
Love cannot lie. It speaks in actions yet has no agenda.
Love is fully grace and fully truth.
It is the epitome of pure.
It cannot be tainted.
Love is incorruptible.
Love is the Spirit of God.

It’s not important to be in love, but to have Love in you.

 

In love/Selfish

Love in you/Selfless

Have you ever wondered why the heart represents love? Because it’s what keeps you alive, what keeps you going. Your highest desire. Let God be your highest desire, not yourself or anything else. Only He can fill the void and give true satisfaction.

Step outside of your selfish borders of love, invite Love into you, and watch you and those around you be transformed by it.

“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.” 1 Corinthians 13:4-8

What has God been laying on your heart about His love lately? Comment below.

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5 More Things My Cat Taught Me About God

I’m always so amazed at how much God can teach us through the most ordinary things in our lives. For me lately, it’s been my cat, Boots.

Here are 5 more things my cat taught me about God:
 

Our hearts melt at our pet’s sad eyes when we leave home in the morning. There’s a whole other melting when we return and they happily greet us at the door. These are the most precious moments to us, because it displays how they willfully love us – without us having to bribe them or pull them out of their hiding spot.

Pets may not always listen and do what we want them to. But if we commanded 100 percent of their actions, they wouldn’t be our loving pets – they’d be smartphones. And we don’t love our smartphones. Because they are just material items that can’t love us back. In the same way, God gave us free will because he didn’t want robots. He didn’t want to force people to love or obey Him. He wanted it to be a choice so it would be true love and not force.

“God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us.” Acts 17:27

Cats can have the biggest mood swings. One second they’re purring on your lap and the next they’re biting your arm because you pet them wrong. But that’s just how cats are. They have their likes and dislikes, but they don’t essentially change. They don’t go through long periods in life where they forget about you or decide they don’t love you anymore. Our pets stay the same. And so does God.

What you experienced with Him yesterday or several years ago, you can experience today. He is still the same. “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever” (Hebrews 13:8). Knowing that we humans are the ones that change, we can examine ourselves if we feel a negative difference in our relationship with God.

My heart was broken the times my cat Boots was in physical pain or when he was depressed after he was separated from his sister. We may feel silly or dramatic for feeling this way and think it is something that God wouldn’t care about.

But, again, we are in His image and He has the same emotions. God loves animals more than you or I or anyone at PETA ever could. He created animals. If we feel horrible when bad things happen to them, then imagine how much more it hurts Him.

“The creation looks forward to the day when it will join God’s children in glorious freedom from death and decay … And we believers also groan … for we long for our bodies to be released from sin and suffering. We, too, wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights as his adopted children, including the new bodies he has promised us.” (Romans 8:21, 23 New Living Translation)

Once, Boots snuck outside and was lost for three days. He thought he was having the time of his life chasing lizards and girl cats around the neighborhood. He didn’t know his life was in danger and that he could die from lack of water, a larger animal, or get ran over by a car. He could have come back home anytime or came to my voice when I went calling him.

Though I knew he didn’t really want to, I still searched for him intensely because I didn’t want him to be harmed. Because I love him and didn’t want to be separated from him forever. When I finally found him and he saw me, he wouldn’t stop yelping in joy. In the same way, God seeks us even when we don’t know we’re lost.

“For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.” Luke 19:10

Sometimes Boots meows and follows me around begging for my attention or a treat and I love every minute of it. Because cats usually have such an independent, do-things-on-my-own attitude, I enjoy the times he willfully comes to me and needs me.

I think humans are the same way – so independent, trying to take everything on ourselves. But when we look to God for help and He has our full attention, He is delighted by our gesture and blesses us.

“If humans, being sinful, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good gifts to those who ask him?” Matthew 7:11

Though God searches for us intensely, He will never force Himself in our lives. He gave us free will so that we could choose to know and love Him.

Would you like to know God personally? Learn more here.

Read Part 1: 5 Things My Cat Taught Me About God

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5 Things My Cat Taught Me About God

“God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may be masters over all the wild animals and creatures upon the earth.” Genesis 1:26

We are made in God’s image.

But we tend to forget that means we have a lot of the same emotions and characteristics that He does. Just as God is Master over us, we are masters to our pets. And if we have such strong emotions and love for our pets, then we can be sure that they’re just a small shadow of the infinitely greater love that God has for us.

Here are 5 things my cat taught me about God:

When I look at my cat Boots, I am amazed when I consider the creator of such a beautiful, wonderfully-made creature! Boots has beautiful, bright green eyes that are full of life, a graceful stride, and soft, perfectly-patterned fur made especially for petting sessions. But above all, God’s greatest work of art is each and every one of us, created uniquely in His image.

“For we are God’s masterpiece, created in the Messiah Jesus to perform good actions that God prepared long ago to be our way of life” (Ephesians 2:10, ISV).

I love my cat Boots and I’m not even one of the true crazy cat people – just moderately crazy. I have several nicknames for him (including Booty), and I treasure all of his little quirks. To me, he’s just the smartest, cutest thing in the world. I’ve never gotten tired of his adorableness.

Do you think God, the One who knows everything about you, feels anything less? No, infinitely greater! God loves you more deeply than you could imagine (Ephesians 3:18-19). He even gave us cute little animals to make our hearts melt.

I talk about my cat – probably too much at times – and I enjoy hanging with him. I even have a photo of Boots as the background on my phone. I love my cat. He is not just mine, but I totally own that fact and brag that he is mine. God does the same with us!

“God is for you. Had he a calendar, your birthday would be circled. If he drove a car, your name would be on his bumper. If there’s a tree in heaven, he’s carved your name in the bark. We know he has a tattoo, and we know what it says. ‘I have written your name on my hand,’ he declares.” – Max Lucado

Many people like cats because they are funny creatures. Sometimes Boots leaves his tongue out after he meows and it’s hilarious. Just recently, when he noticed The Aristocats playing on TV, his eyes got huge and were glued to it for 20 minutes. God loves to see us laugh. The Bible tells of His sense of humor and speaks of God laughing. And if we laugh, then we know God laughs even greater!

My cat is very mischievous. He loves to play, fetch, and explore new things (like grocery bags). Every morning when I get dressed, Boots jumps on the overhead rack in my closet. He walks back and forth all over my folded clothes, sometimes knocking some down. But I don’t get mad or yell, because he’s adorable and I love him.

Now I’m not saying that God likes when we do bad stuff or that He won’t correct us or let us experience consequences – because He will. But I am saying that if I’m patient with my cat because I love him, then God is unimaginably patient with you. When certain things feel unforgivable and too big of a mess to clean up, God reminds you that He’s big enough to easily fold things back up – and that He still adores you.

“But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.” Psalms 86:15

If you feel like you’ve been needing forgiveness, love, or have been wanting to know God more intimately, just ask Him! He’s sure to answer you.

See also:

• 5 More Things My Cat Taught Me About God
• 4 Reasons We Need to Embrace Our Brokenness
• 4 Questions for Anyone Struggling to Pray

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4 Questions For Anyone Struggling to Pray

So many of us struggle with communication in our relationships, and I’ll be the first to admit that I am the worst.

Plenty of times I have viewed communication with my loved ones as an obligation or something to check off my to-do list. But I’ve learned that communication is much more than a task.

Communication actually is the relationship.

And since prayer is our main form of communication with God, prayer is our relationship with God.

Here are 4 ways we can look at our relationships with people to learn about our relationship with God.

1. Are you distant? Imagine if your spouse put everything before you and gave you only the scraps of their spare time, and then used systematic, habitual communication with you. What if they solely talked to you when they were either extremely happy or extremely sad? What if they only talked to you briefly, maybe a minute in the morning and a minute before bed? Even if some of these conversations were deep and amazing, you would still be heartbroken and always yearning for more of them.

This quote from Richard Foster is a wonderful description of how God feels when we may treat Him this way:

“Today the heart of God is an open wound of love. He aches over our distance and preoccupation. He mourns that we do not draw near to him. He grieves that we have forgotten him. He weeps over our obsession with muchness and manyness. He longs for our presence. He is inviting you – and me – to come home, to come home to where we belong, to come home to that for which we were created. His arms are stretched out wide to receive us. His heart is enlarged to take us in.” – Richard Foster

Just as in any relationship, we shouldn’t take our problems out on God. Though we may get busy with work, have a bad day, or go through tough times, we shouldn’t get distant. We should actually use this as an excuse to keep the line of communication open – not even leaving our problems at work or where they belong – but bringing them all to Him.

Try writing down whatever is bothering you on a piece of paper. Pray about it and then tear up the paper. The problem is now in His hands! This is the confidence we have in approaching God, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us and it is given to us. 1 John 5:14

2. Do you spend quality time? The quality of our communication and the quality of time spent go hand in hand. Are we giving God the firstfruits of our time, or are we giving Him the leftovers? Are we spending enough time with God for it to leave an impression on us? We usually walk away from a conversation with a friend with something to think about, even if it’s something tiny. It doesn’t have to be an impassioned, blood-sweating prayer in order for it to be meaningful. Sometimes it’s the smallest interactions that bring us the most joy.

Try reading a part of the Bible or a devotional. Pray God will speak to you as you read. When something stands out to you, stop reading and meditate on it. If you have a question, pray! He’s sure to answer you in one way or another.

3. Are you doing all of the talking? Have you ever had a conversation with someone where they talk on and on, but as soon as you say something, they change the subject? Or maybe you were the one talking their ear off and weren’t interested in what they had to say. I remember talking to my mom on the phone and I was so caught up in my own thoughts that I didn’t hear what she was saying and I hung up with her in the middle of her sentence. It made me sad to know that I made her feel unimportant and unheard.

Communication is a two-way street, and listening is just as important as talking. How many times have we shut out God’s voice by doing all of the talking and not listening? And we definitely don’t want to miss out on what God has to say to us – it’s most likely the answer to our problem.

Aside from talking to the Lord, try taking some time out to just bask in His presence and praise Him. It is during these times of praise that we feel His Loving, Truthful presence the most, as He speaks into our hearts and minds. What I love about this is that whether you throw your hands up and sing or go watch the sunset, the way you praise is totally up to you. Praise Him the way you know how.

4. Lastly, are you constant? Although we are told to pray without ceasing, I must admit that it is difficult to pray all day long when we must work and take care of our homes. This is when the relationship we’ve been building with God in private has its chance to shine outwardly and bear its fruits. After genuine communication, we’ll find the Lord influencing our words, behaviors and actions, regardless of our physical whereabouts.

Depending on His Spirit in our day-to-day lives will become less and less foreign and difficult. It will feel as natural as a relationship with our closest friend.

After all, that’s exactly what it is.

See also:

• 4 Reasons We Need to Embrace Our Brokenness
• 5 Things My Cat Taught Me About God

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