Ways we can show and express God's Love:
We also learned a little while back how, "Love" is the fruit of the Spirit,
and that joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness
and self-control are manifestations of Love.
These are all ways that we can express our love for Jesus, and show His Love
to others. But, these things don't always come easy or naturally to us. But
there is One who can help us. The Holy Spirit!
When I was 24, a friend invited me to his church group, and shortly after, I
accepted Jesus as my savior, which radically changed my life. At the time, I
was definitely not a mature Christian, God still had a lot to teach me, and
many life lessons were to come and still are. At the time, I was hanging
out with a small group of Christian friends who were not really walking with
the Lord. They did stupid, immature things. I wanted to fit in, impress
them, and make them laugh, so I also did immature and stupid things.
But, a short while later, I attended this awesome Christian event. It was
kind of like a retreat. It was a powerful experience for me. The Holy Spirit
met me there. I knew at that time I wanted to become a better Christian.
Also, there were people in my church group who were Godly examples, and I
desired to be more like that. I wanted to be more like Jesus. So, that day
I surrendered to God some of the things that I knew needed to go, and that
day I began to walk closer with Jesus.
I was definitely not perfect and had a lot to learn and grow. But I needed
help. So, I started praying a very simple but powerful prayer. "Lord, I want
to be more like your Son Jesus". My desire was to be a man of Integrity.
Because I truly wanted change in my life, and went before the Lord and asked
Him for help, the Holy Spirit began convicting me of those things that I
needed to change and work on. There were things in my heart that I couldn't
have changed on my own, but by the power of the Holy Spirit, they were
changed!
I encourage us all that if you desire change in your life, and you want to
be more like Jesus, to go before the Lord and ask Him for help. Also, ask
him to reveal those things that He would like you to hand over to Him that
might be getting in the way of a closer relationship with Him. I believe
God Loves to help us change and be more like His Son Jesus when we truly
desire that change and ask Him for help.
As we grow in these different expressions of Love and draw closer to Jesus,
we will experience God more in our lives, we will feel more joy and peace,
and God's love and light will shine in and through us, not only making a
difference in our lives, but also in the lives of others.
Michael is a youth leader at Surge.
Comments