Devotional thoughts tagged as: 'love'
The Never-Ending Hug
My youngest daughter, Laura, said to me once, I think maybe heaven will be like a loving hug that never ends. She said this when we were having our night time routine of chatter, prayer and hugs. She especially likes a long hug. She said, That's the best part!
The hug—that's when the love becomes more than words, doesn't it? When the action expresses God's love—that's when it touches our hearts the most. We want to savor it! We don't want it to end.
Our individual bit of spirit is wrapped up in God's abundant spirit, the best place of all to be—in a never ending hug!
Debbie Russell
Frankfort, Indiana
This devotional thought was taken from the book Small Wonders: Children's Faith Stories from the Indiana United Methodist Church, compiled and edited by Lynne DeMichele.
Prayer as a Request for Joy
In Philippians chapter one verses 2-7, Paul prays that the Philippians may abound more and more in love. Without love, your heart can never pray or praise effectively. Love for, as well as, the love of Christ enriches your life, according to Paul. This was because Paul viewed Christ as highly exalted and his prayers in Philippians demonstrate this belief.
Understanding God's Love
In 2 Samuel 18:5-9, 15, 31-33, King David pleads with his commanders to deal gently with his rebellious son, Absalom. Absalom had tried to unseat David from the throne, yet David still loved him. In this text we begin to catch a glimpse in David about what God's love for sinners might be like.
Absalom ended up getting caught in a tree and left dangling between heaven and earth. He was completely helpless. The result of his own treachery. In the end one of David's commanders killed Absalom to avoid future threats to the throne.
So how is God's love like the love David had for son Absalom? How would you want your son or daughter dealt with if they committed a serious crime? How does God treat us?
He forgives us because of Christ's death on the Cross. We are forgiven, but we do not deserve forgiveness. In a sense sinners are like Absalom, we are in completely helpless state, the result of our own choices.
How do you understand God's love for you?