Love is a Motive

God's been working on my heart this month. He's put in my place many times, and He's been reminding me each day that He's the one in charge. The convictions keep coming my way, and while it can be frustrating, it's also rewarding.

I've been reading through the book of John with a friend. God has really been convicting me of being a true Christian. As I read I've been questioning my faith, and I've been challenged to make it stronger. My faith is big in my heart, but my actions in this world are small.

I had a conversation the other day with a Peruvian friend about serving and prayer. We had a very similar conversation last year around this time, and it actually again was brought up in Bible study tonight. You see, this man is a man of faith. He is prayer warrior for Christ, and his faith that Christ can and will provide for each one of his needs is stronger than most people I know. In all three conversations the basis of the topic was love...love for Christ leads to love for others.

Tonight at Bible study we read 1st Corinthians 13...the LOVE chapter. We talked about love as a motive, and I related this to the ,conversation I had with my friend earlier this week and year ago. In that conversation, my friend was telling me about all of the Americans that come to Peru to glorify themselves. He told me that he could easily spot someone who came down to serve in the ministry because they loved God and loved his people. He also told me that he has learned to easily spot those people who come to Peru to serve themselves and return home saying, "look what I did." He, too, mentioned love being the motive.

Serving because you want to bring glory to yourself leads you to be an ineffective witness and can sometimes turn others away from Christ. You get easily frustrated with the work, you lose patience with the lack of available resources, you become irritated at the different way of doing things, etc. However, when one chooses to serve others out of love for Christ and the mission Christ has set before us, the stakes change. Those you are serving see your heart, they notice your act of kindness, and they feel loved because you are loving on them through service. People are drawn to you when you serve in this way, and they want to know why you choose to serve them when you have "better things" to do with your time. They are drawn to Christ because you are a model of Christ's love to them.

Last year I was in Peru to serve. I was not there to bring glory to myself or have people say great things about me. I was there because God gave me a love for the people of Peru, and God provided an amazing opportunity for me to share life with them, even though it was only for a short time. Viewing love as a motive has really helped to shape my perspective in the last 18 months. Love is more than a word, it isn't just a feeling. Love is action. Love takes work and perserverence, but love always wins.

On a side note, through this friend, I've also been challenged to step up my prayer life and my faith that God does answer prayers. I've got a lot to work on, I suppose!!

Mi Dios Es Tan Grande

Talk about spiritual warfare. If it isn't something personal to me being attacked, it is someone close to me. It seems as if one thing comes after another, and it is making me sick to my stomach. I pray that it will end, but then again...no one ever said being a Christian was easy. If anyone understands that, the Apostle Paul knew it full well.

In the last month multiple friends have come to me with prayer needs for wrong choices and/or injustice. Add to that the sickness and physical pain of those around us, and it becomes obvious that this world we live in is a dark, nasty place.

I am learning more and more about the Bible and it's truth each day. As I currently study 1 Corinthians, Galatians, John, and Proverbs (all for different purposes), I am seeing similar themes of salvation and living a Christian life. I find hope and encouragement. I find peace that only a living Savior can provide. I am learning now more than ever what it means to cling to the cross, carry every need before our Creator, and to depend on him for wisdom, strength, and healing.

Paul's life is a perfect example of strength and perserverance even in the most difficult circumstances. He was imprisoned multiple times for preaching the gospel, yet he never gave up. He was blunt, honest, and personal with those around him wanting nothing more than to see people saved. God gave him huge responsibilities because God knew that Paul could handle it. 1st Corinthians 10:13 says, "No temptation  has seized you except that which is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it." Paul never gave up when things got tough.

I am thankful for Paul's example. I am grateful to God that he is big and mighty. Like the Spanish song says, "Mi Dios es tan grande, tan fuerte, poderoso. No hay nada q no pueda hacer." I pray that even in the tough situations and the moments of spiritual warfare that I never forget the God of the universe who loves me enough to care about me, an insignificant human being living on this earth with 6 billion plus other human beings. I pray that through conversations and mentoring relationships that I would have the words of God to speak to others that would reveal to them the love of Christ and the power of his resurrection. I pray the I not give up in the tough times and that I would perservere to the end.

God is in control, and I will not let Satan defeat me!