“…And if I have faith that can move mountains,
But have not love,
I am nothing.”
1 Corinthians 13:2b
I’m in awe of mountain-moving faith…the kind of faith that believes against all odds, without a glimmer of doubt, and beyond all obstacles that the mountain in front of you will be leveled. The 11th chapter of Hebrews gives account of the Bible’s “Faith Hall of Fame.” By faith, Noah built the Ark and saved his family from the Great Flood. By faith, Abraham left his home to live in tents in the Promised Land and became a father late in life producing a line of descendants “as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore”…just as God had promised. By faith, Joseph endured slavery and false imprisonment and rose to power in Egypt so that he could one day save his entire family, Abraham’s descendants, from severe famine. By faith, Moses’ parents hid him for three months after he was born to spare his life. Then Moses grew up to lead God’s people by faith out of slavery in Egypt by passing through the Red Sea on dry land!
The entire chapter of Hebrews 11 summarizes the lives of other great men and women of faith who conquered kingdoms, shut the mouths of lions, quenched the fury of the flames, escaped the edge of the sword, whose weakness was turned to strength, and women whose dead were raised to life again. They wandered in deserts, and mountains and lived in tents, caves, prisons and holes in the ground, yet through faith they persevered. The Bible is full of these amazing stories, which dramatize mountain-moving faith in action.
These stories of faith are so significant to God that He had them written into His Word for us to read about them today. Yet I learn in 1 Corinthians 13:2b that…”if I have faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am NOTHING.”
If God grants me the ability to “move mountains” in my life through faith in Him, it is worthless if I do not have His love flowing through me into the lives of others. God’s love is always focused outward toward others. The miraculous feats of faith, which we read about in the Bible, all had a grand purpose in God’s big picture and are evidence of His enduring love for His children. Some lost their lives and died full of faith never realizing that their piece of the puzzle would some day help complete the masterpiece of God’s great love for us.
All of the people mentioned in Hebrews 11 were ordinary people like you and me. They became famous for faith because they allowed God to work through their lives. They said “yes” to God’s requests and trusted Him to guide them and take care of the details. They put others ahead of their own comfort and convenience and didn’t take the easy way out in their daily path. They didn’t realized that their actions of faith would one day make headlines in the pages of the Bible. As children of God, we are each writing our own faith story today. God wants to use our story to help complete His masterpiece. You never know when a seemingly simple act of faith might have eternal purpose. Allow God to use you in His grand plan, but be sure that love is the motivation of your mountain-moving faith.
…Because without love, we are nothing.
Love is the greatest of all human qualities. In fact it is an attribute of God Himself; 1 John 4:8 tells us, “God is love.” So if we possess special abilities, such as eloquent speech, but we don’t have God, then those gifts are useless ~ nothing more than a noisy bell, a clanging cymbal, or the creaking of a rusty gate.
Love makes our gifts and talents useful. God’s love working through our lives is directed outward toward others. He has blessed each of His children with unique and special gifts, and His great plan is for us to use those talents in the work of His kingdom serving others. He desires for us to use our skills and abilities to build up and strengthen others in our sphere of influence.
We all don’t possess the same types of talents and abilities, but love is available to everyone. By allowing God to live through us, we are able to show His love to others. God’s love blended with our talents creates a dynamic synergy with divine purpose. This is “the most excellent way.”
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11: 28
Are you tired? Weary? Worn out? Burned out? Struggling? Burdened? Are you carrying a heavy load in your life? Jesus offers a cure for your weariness. His gentle calling says, “Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” (Matthew 11:28 – 30MSG)
Whether you are carrying burdens of guilt or a heavy load of life circumstances, Jesus promises to give you rest. The type of rest that Jesus promises is love, healing and peace with God, not necessarily the end of all our problems. God’s divine rest provides a feeling of peace that is beyond human understanding. Jesus lifts the cares and troubles of everyday life off of our shoulders and bears them for us. Answer His gentle call and allow Him to bless you with His brand of rest for your soul.
Truly my soul finds rest in God; My salvation comes from him. Psalm 62:1
Take a moment to let the words of this scripture penetrate your mind and permeate your heart. The same Mighty God who created the universe is in your midst. As His child you are never alone. Your Heavenly Father is beside you every step of the way. He is always present in your life. When the going gets tough, He’s not going to bail out.
God loves you unconditionally. He celebrates and sings because of YOU. As a mom of three sons, I know how it feels to “rejoice” over my children. Be assured that my voice will be the loudest one cheering in the stands whenever there’s a home run, touch down or game winning basket. I also celebrate other accomplishments with them such as good grades on a report card, learning a new skill, or making the team. Truthfully, I rejoice over my boys each morning when I wake them up and each time they walk in the door from school. So if an earthly parent can have such joy over her children, I can’t imagine how much more our Heavenly Father, who created each and every one of us, rejoices over all His children.
When you are fearful, hurting or sad, He quiets you and comforts you with His love. Our All-knowing, All-seeing, ever present Lord knows your every need and thought. He senses the pain you may be feeling. He knows your circumstances and understands your fears with complete clarity. Just imagine His divine arms wrapped tightly around you, holding you, consoling you, reassuring you, soothing you and calming all your fears.
God’s word is true. So we can believe without a doubt that the Mighty One who will save is in your midst. He is rejoicing over you. He is quieting you by His love. And your Heavenly Father is singing loudly over you with joy. Acknowledge His presence in your life. Sense His joy and gladness over you. Feel His comfort, and listen for His loud singing throughout your day.
Each day untold numbers of negative thoughts can swirl through our heads. It is often difficult to control those thoughts, but I have found that the best remedy for negative thinking is through God’s powerful and positive Word. When you feel discouraged, weak, too tied to go on, unloved, condemned, depleted, confused, incompetent, fearful, guilty, unsure, defeated, worried, sad, or alone, God has an answer for you. Say these verses out loud until you have memorized them. Repeat them to yourself each time that negative thought creeps into your mind. God loves you unconditionally! He speaks to you through His Word. Listen to His voice of truth instead of the lies that may be playing on “auto-shuffle” in your mind.
Here are just a few examples to get you started:
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God’s Answers to our Negative Thoughts:
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Create in me a clean heart, O God,
And renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Psalm 51:10
With the fresh start of a New Year, it’s a great feeling to visualize the year ahead as a “clean slate” ~ a brand new period of time in which we can aspire to achieve certain goals, a renewed time of enthusiasm and expectations. We look forward to the coming months with eager anticipation about what the next 365 days will bring.
The beginning of a New Year is also a good time to ask God to “clean house” in our hearts. As we seek God’s desire in our lives for the coming year, we should also ask Him to clean our hearts and renew our spirits. Perhaps there’s a build-up of sin in our lives that could hinder our efforts for Him. There could be bitterness lodged in the cracks and crevices. A thick coating of an unforgiving nature might be smothering our spirit. There might be harmful habits or relationships that should be purged. Or perhaps we are constantly replaying negative thoughts or lies in our minds that need to be erased. Regardless of what type of cleansing is necessary, God is well-equipped to handle it.
The same God who created the heavens and earth can create a clean heart in you. No matter how deep the “dirt” and “grime” might be in your life, your heavenly Father is capable of wiping it clean. So call on God for some “housekeeping services” as we begin the new year. Ask Him to create a clean heart in you. After the thorough heart cleansing, your spirit will be renewed, refreshed, revived and ready for action in the year ahead.
God is Good. His love for you will never end. He is faithful and dependable, and His promises never fail.
“Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love
and his wonderful deeds for men.”
Psalm 107:8 NIV
My sons and I recently worked on a 1000 piece puzzle together. We spent many hours over a period of several weeks slowly piecing the puzzle together. First we began with the border of the huge puzzle, then worked our way inward. The closer we got to completing our project, the more excited we were about seeing the end result. We each wanted to be the one who fitted the very last piece in its place. It was amazing to watch how the picture took shape from fitting together hundreds of tiny pieces. In the end, we were all disappointed to realize that we were missing a few of our pieces. We had worked so diligently, for so many hours, only to find out that we couldn’t complete the picture without those pieces.
The verse above tells us that God wants to make our lives complete, but He can only accomplish this if we give Him ALL the pieces. Our Heavenly Father sees the grand picture of our lives, and He knows exactly which pieces fit together perfectly. If we withhold any part of our lives from Him, we will never know the beauty of the complete picture as designed by our Creator. Trust Him to know what is best for you. Place all your “pieces” before Him today, and allow Him to make your life complete.
everyday encouragement 