A Command to Love

“I give you a new command: Love one another. Just as I have loved you, you must also love one another.” – (John 13:34, HCSB)

“I give you a new command: Love each other. You must love each other just as I loved you.” – (John 13:34, ERV)

“So I give you a new command. Love each other deeply and fully. Remember the ways that I have loved you, and demonstrate your love for others in the same way.” – (John 13:34, VOICE)

We have been created for and commanded to love. Jesus demonstrated what it is to truly love one another through His life, death, resurrection and ascension. Everything Jesus did, He did in love. He helped, healed, touched, provided, sacrificed, forgave, prayed for, and so much more. If we want to live a life that follows after His command, we must choose love in everything that we say and do. Our decision to love is not to earn something, but rather to allow the love He gives to us to be poured out and overflow to those around us. To learn to love as we are commanded takes a lifetime of practice. We all have our moments and fall short, yet He picks us up, dusts us off, and reminds us how great His love is so that we can rise up and choose to love likewise. May we ever seek the Lord to lead us to love as He does so that all might know the overwhelming, never-ending love of God.

Called and commanded,

  My love. ❤ Photo credit – Open Door Photography

to go forth and love;

not as the world does,

but like Christ above.

Love’s sacrificial,

it puts others first;

choice to keep loving,

even at our worst.

Love seeks to lift up,

to build, encourage;

it always forgives,

does not discourage.

Love is full of grace,

and given for free;

embraces the heart,

shows people they’re seen.

Thank You, Lord Jesus,

that You love us best;

with love abundant,

to bless and be blessed.

Dear Heavenly Father, thank You that You not only command us to love, but You have shown us again and again, what it is to love. Thank You Jesus, for living a life of love and for empowering those around us to love well. Forgive us for the times that we have not loved as You intended. Teach us to follow after You with all that we are so that we might love well in all that we say and do. Lead us in Your amazing love so that all whom we encounter would recognize the goodness of Your faithful love. May many come into a lasting relationship with You. Be glorified O God, as we choose to love as You first loved us. Amen.

© Shannon Elizabeth Grabrick and Revelations in Writing, May 2011 – present

My lips will glorify You because Your faithful love is better than life. – Psalm 63:3

United in Peace

Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. – (Ephesians 4:3, NIV)

You are joined together with peace through the Spirit. Do all you can to continue as you are, letting peace hold you together. – (Ephesians 4:3, ERV)

Make every effort to preserve the unity the Spirit has already created, with peace binding you together. – (Ephesians 4:3, VOICE)

 

Yesterday, I had the pleasure of attending the celebration of life for my father-in-law with my husband, sister-in-law, her husband, and my brother-in-law. Incredibly, despite the eclectic collection of family brought together by loss, there was a sense of peace in the room, despite normal tensions between some of the various family members. Everyone seemed to set aside their differences for the sake of celebrating their eldest sibling/uncle. Stories were shared around tables, and much laughter filled the room. I think Donald would have been pleased to see smiling faces, rather than tears, and delighted at the distance that so many traveled to gather in his honor. The sentiment that Mark, his brother and I walked away with, was gratitude. We were thankful for the opportunity to see the aunts, uncles and cousins all together in one place, and to have had a positive and peaceful gathering together with family.

 

Each chance that we get,

6/7 of the remaining siblings in top photo. Their children in photo below.

Rise up and choose peace;

Preserve what God gives,

Allow grace release.

A spirit of peace,

Invites others in;

Broadens your circle,

It’s how grace begins.

Go forth in God’s grace,

Sow always, His peace;

Let God’s love be known,

For it shall not cease.

 

Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for Your goodness and grace that grants us peace in places it seems unlikely. Thank You for empowering us with Your Spirit to extend peace wherever we go. Forgive us for the times that we have neglected our role as purveyors of peace. Teach us to trust You more, so that we would depend on You to go before us, walk beside us, and dwell within us in peace. Show us how to love those around us in ways that promote Your peace wherever we go. May many come into a lasting relationship with You. Be glorified O God, as we rise up and share Your peace wherever we go. Amen.

 

© Shannon Elizabeth Grabrick and Revelations in Writing, May 2011 – present

 

The Lord gives strength to His people; the Lord blesses His people with peace. – Psalm 29:11

The Mighty Power Within

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. – (Ephesians 6:10, NIV)

Last of all I want to remind you that your strength must come from the Lord’s mighty power within you. – (Ephesians 6:10, TLB)

Finally, brothers and sisters, draw your strength and might from God. – (Ephesians 6:10, VOICE)

 

Though I am an individual who has been granted a generous portion of strength, it is not unflappable, and I am very aware of my own limitations. Human strength cannot be sustained 24/7 for weeks and weeks on end. Supernatural intervention is required, if we are to rise up and answer the call to do and be more than our humanity will allow. This space of being constantly dependent on Christ is an ongoing battle. I want to be enough, do enough, and have enough to spare, yet when I revert to attempting to power through, there is never enough on my own. However, when I lean into the Lord and depend on Him, He is enough, and I am able to navigate the raging waters around me as if they were still. Christ within me, is enough; yet it must come from Him and not from me. There is a delicate balance between self and spirit, and it requires patience and wisdom and waiting to discover the difference. Christ directs our steps and strengthens us for each next step we need to take. Self runs ahead and becomes weary, before there is even a plain path on which to tread.

Mom’s speech therapist accepted a different position, leaving the current in-home company that her therapies are through, without a speech therapist. This means that she has to switch in-home care companies entirely, as her insurance will only work with one company at a time. The loss of one, results in the loss of many, including: her wonderful physical therapist, occupational therapist, and in-home nursing care team. Progress under the current team has been phenomenal, so we are praying and trusting that the new organization is equally empowering for mom’s remarkable rehabilitation and recovery. May we ever seek the Lord to be our strength as He is our Source of power that moves mountains and marks milestones in mom’s healing.

 

Be strong in the Lord,

For He is our rock;

All strength comes from Him,

To rise up and walk.

Keep moving in faith,

Ever pressing on;

Answering His call,

When our strength is gone.

It is in that space,

Where our own strength ends;

That we discover,

On Whom to depend.

Forever faithful,

God will never leave;

His strength unending,

To Him, we must cleave.

 

Dear Heavenly Father, thank You that strength comes from You. Thank You that when we recognize that our own strength is gone, Yours is at the ready to carry us on. Forgive us for attempting to muscle our way through life’s trials, as we are not strong enough on our own. Teach us to trust and depend on You, for You have already placed Your strength within us through Your Spirit. Show us how to love those around us in a way that strengthens, encourages and builds up hearts that are depleted. May many come into a lasting relationship with You. Be glorified O God, as we seek You to be our strength, always. Amen.

 

© Shannon Elizabeth Grabrick and Revelations in Writing, May 2011 – present

 

For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline. – 2 Timothy 1:7

To Know Love

May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God. – (Ephesians 3:19, NLT)

Christ’s love is greater than anyone can ever know, but I pray that you will be able to know that love. Then you can be filled with everything God has for you. – (Ephesians 3:19, ERV)

I ask that you’ll know the love of Christ that is beyond knowledge so that you will be filled entirely with the fullness of God. – (Ephesians 3:19, CEB)

 

When we know and begin to understand the depth and breadth of Christ’s love for us, we become equipped to go and love likewise. The space within us that felt as if something were missing, becomes filled with the fullness of God. His light and life and love make us complete, empowering us to go forth and give as we have been given. So often, God makes His love tangible through the people whom He has placed in our lives, and in turn, utilizes the willing to do the same for others. May we each experience the love of Christ in a new way, so that we might gain a greater grasp on the magnitude of His magnificent love for us all and go forth to love likewise.

 

The greatest of loves, 

That’s ever been known;

Comes to us from Christ,

Through sacrifice shown.

Our hearts cannot grasp,

How deep and how wide;

The love of the Lord,

A faithful life guide.

It is by His grace,

That He shall make known;

The fullness of life,

Through His great love shown.

 

Dear Heavenly Father, thank You that Your heart is for us to experience and come to know the fullness of Your love and the life and power that come from knowing You. Forgive us for neglecting to seek You when love feels far from us. Teach us to trust You more, so that we would find the fullness of all that You have for us. Show us how to love others well, so they may experience and understand more of who You are and how You love. May many come into a lasting relationship with You. Be glorified O God, as we seek You to know and understand more and more of the fullness of Your love so that we may go out and love like You. Amen.

 

© Shannon Elizabeth Moreno and Revelations in Writing, May 2011 – present

 

Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God. – 2 Corinthians 3:5

Sharing Ourselves

“And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.” – (Hebrews 13:16)

Community is critical, and I am so thankful that both my school and church community are heavily invested and committed doing good and sharing with others, as these two arenas are the areas where both my boys and I spend the majority of most of our days.  Teaching kids the importance of looking outside of themselves to see that there are needs right here in our own community, and empowering them to rise up and take action, is a common occurrence throughout the year, as my school holds a food drive prior to Thanksgiving, and then sponsors families in need prior to the Christmas break, so that children will have gifts to open and families will have meals to share.  Similarly, our church creates Thanksgiving baskets for families in need in the community, and then holds an incredible evening event where many businesses and the police department partner with our church to turn the sanctuary into a space where parents are able to come in and select several gifts for each of their children, and then have them wrapped and tagged, while their kiddos are being cared for in another area, unaware of the surprises that will soon be theirs to open.

The good and sharing that we do with others, goes beyond big events.  Our time, our resources, and ourselves – these are what He is asking us to share with others, so that they too, may come to call Him King this Christmas.  For the time that you have invested in others, even when it was not convenient, know that He is pleased.  As you chose to give, even when it meant you did not get something that you may have wanted, He is pleased.  Each time you truly listened and heard the heart of another, He has seen you, and with you, He is well pleased.

This is but a fraction of the parent shop… 🙂

Forget not to do good,

and give yourself away;

as we extend our hearts,

that’s the choice to obey.

Giving that which we have,

of our talent and time;

God sees and He honors,

each kindness to mankind.

May we go forth and give,

as we have been given;

may His Name be made known,

on earth as in heaven.

Dear Heavenly Father, thank You that You have done the ultimate good for us, as You shared Your Son so that we might have the hope of eternal life.  Thank You that this is a season, more than any other, that people are receptive to receive the good and sharing that others extend.  Forgive us for not making the most of the opportunities You provide, and help us to have open hearts, so that we will hear and obey whatever You ask of us.  Teach us to trust You completely, knowing that You are good, and that You are pleased each time we choose to do as You ask of us.  Just as a parent is proud of their child when they share and are kind to others, help us to remember that You too, see us through the eyes of a loving Father.  May we share with others and do good, not only in this sacred season, but throughout the year – as an offering unto You.  May many come to know You as their Savior, as we seek to serve You with our lives.  Be exalted, O God.  Amen.

© Shannon Elizabeth Moreno and Revelations in Writing, May 2011 – present.