Keep on seeking, and you will find (Luke 11:9; NLT).
To seek Christ
Is to be sought,
And to find him
Is to be found.
To hear him
Is to be heard,
And to see him
Is to be seen.
To know Christ
Is to be known,
And to serve him
Is to be served.
To bless him
Is to be blessed –
And to love him
Is to be loved.
We love because he first loved us (1 John 4:19; NIV).
My beloved is mine and I am his (Song of Songs 2:16; NIV).
Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6; NLT).
Then he said to the crowd, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross daily, and follow me” (Luke 9:23; NLT).
I have given you an example to follow. Do as I have done to you (John 13:15; NLT).
References
A reading: Ephesians 3:14-19; JB.
I pray, kneeling before the Father, from whom every family, whether spiritual or natural, takes its name: Out of his infinite glory, may he give you the power through his Spirit for your hidden self to grow strong, so that Christ may live in your hearts through faith, and then, planted in love and built on love, you will with all the saints have strength to grasp the breadth and the length, the height and the depth; until, knowing the love of Christ, which is beyond all knowledge, you are filled with the utter fullness of God.
Pray continually (1 Thessalonians 5:17; NIV).
Don’t try to make yourself pray:
Just offer your thinking
To Christ.
Don’t try to make yourself pray:
Just pour out your troubles
To him.
Don’t try to make yourself pray:
Just face all your anguish
With Christ.
Don’t try to make yourself pray:
Just share all your burdens
With him.
Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light” (Matthew 11:28-30; NLT).
Blessed be the LORD! Day after day he bears our burdens (Psalm 68:19; CSB).
References
I am the one who answers your prayers and cares for you (Hosea 14:8; NLT).
Surely he took up our pain, and bore our suffering (Isaiah 53:4; NIV).
In all their suffering he also suffered, and he personally rescued them. In his love and mercy he redeemed them. He lifted them up and carried them through all the years (Isaiah 63:9; NLT).
Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it (Psalm 34:14; NIV).
I pray for peace
In every mind:
Deep peace –
And in my own.
I pray for love
In every heart:
Great love –
And in my own.
I pray for truth
In every soul:
Pure truth –
And in my own.
I pray for hope
In every life:
Bright hope –
And in my own.
Look at my Servant, whom I have chosen… Finally he will cause justice to be victorious. And his name will be the hope of all the world (Matthew 12:18,20-21; NLT).
At last the poor have hope, and the snapping jaws of the wicked are shut (Job 5:16; NLT).
The Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22-3; NLT).
References
The Lord is peace (Judges 6:24; NLT).
God is love (1 John 4:8; NLT).
The Spirit is truth (1 John 5:6; NKJV).
Pray continually (1 Thessalonians 5:17; NIV).
I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them. Pray this way for kings and all who are in authority so that we can live peaceful and quiet lives marked by godliness and dignity. This is good and pleases God our Savior, who wants everyone to be saved and to understand the truth (1 Timothy 2:2-4; NLT).
O Lord, you alone are my hope (Psalm 71:5; NLT).
Put your hope in the LORD. Travel steadily along his path (Psalm 37:34; NLT).
“My Lord and my God!” Thomas exclaimed (John 20:28; NLT).
The heart of the gospel
Is Jesus.
The heart of the gospel:
Be kind.
The heart of the gospel:
Forgiveness.
The heart of the gospel
Is love.
Love your enemies! Do good to them. Lend to them without expecting to be repaid. Then your reward from heaven will be very great, and you will truly be acting as children of the Most High, for he is kind to those who are unthankful and wicked. You must be compassionate, just as your Father is compassionate (Luke 6:35-6; NLT).
The King will reply, “Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me” (Matthew 25:40; NIV).
References
Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us (Colossians 3:11; NLT).
Anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love (1 John 4:8; NLT).
We know how much God loves us, and we have put our trust in his love. God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them (1 John 4:16; NLT).
I love you, Lord (Psalm 18:1; NLT).
He loves us with unfailing love (Psalm 117:2; NLT).
May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else (1 Thessalonians 3:12; NIV).
Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against a fellow Israelite, but love your neighbour as yourself (Leviticus 19:18; NLT).
Love the stranger (Deuteronomy 10:19; NKJV).
Show love to foreigners (Deuteronomy 10:19; NLT).
Love your enemies (Matthew 5:44; NLT).
I love you, Lord (Psalm 18:1; NLT).
I love you –
But that’s only half
The story.
You love me too –
And that’s what makes me
Whole.
For we are one –
In joy, and pain,
And sorrow;
One in mind and body,
Heart,
And soul.
Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ and become one with him (Philippians 3:8-9; NLT).
References
He loves us with unfailing love (Psalm 117:2; NLT).
“My Lord and my God!” Thomas exclaimed (John 20:28; NLT).
Anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love (1 John 4:8; NLT).
We know how much God loves us, and we have put our trust in his love. God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them (1 John 4:16; NLT).
May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else (1 Thessalonians 3:12; NIV).
Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against a fellow Israelite, but love your neighbour as yourself (Leviticus 19:18; NLT).
Love the stranger (Deuteronomy 10:19; NKJV).
Show love to foreigners (Deuteronomy 10:19; NLT).
Love your enemies (Matthew 5:44; NLT).
This evening I watched a video in which a man who was being subjected to online hate for rescuing abandoned animals spoke of “turning his pain into love”. Sadly, I don’t know his name, but his story instantly inspired the following words…
Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind (Romans 12:2; NIV).
Love your enemies (Luke 6:35; ESV).
Let’s turn our pain
Into love,
And let’s turn our rage
Into calm.
Let’s turn our dread
Into peace,
And let’s turn our hurt
Into balm.
Let’s turn our fear
Into strength,
And let’s turn our grief
Into care.
Let’s turn our past
Into hope,
And let’s turn our lives
Into prayer.
Never stop praying (1 Thessalonians 5:17; NLT).
Pray for those who abuse you (Luke 6:28; ESV).
I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them. Pray this way for kings and all who are in authority so that we can live peaceful and quiet lives marked by godliness and dignity. This is good and pleases God our Savior, who wants everyone to be saved and to understand the truth (1 Timothy 2:2-4; NLT).
Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, “So shall your offspring be” (Romans 4:18; NIV).
Let’s hope,
Despite hopelessness;
Love,
Despite loneliness;
Serve,
Despite suffering;
Live,
Despite loss.
Let’s pray,
Despite pointlessness;
Wait,
Despite weariness;
Trust,
Despite trials –
And carry
Our cross.
Then he said to the crowd, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross daily, and follow me” (Luke 9:23; NLT).
I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world (John 16:33; NLT).
We can’t get peace by shouting.
We can’t get love with threats.
We can’t get what we want
With violence,
Or with bombs…
Because when we bully, abuse,
And threaten others,
Attack them, destroy their lives, their families,
And their homes,
We create chaos, fear, and trauma;
Heartbreak; hatred; bitterness –
And the unquenchable thirst
For revenge.
All these can be crushed –
For a while.
Locked down, and suppressed –
For a while…
But people’s loss and grief,
Their bitter resentment,
And their slow-burning
Absolute determination
To take revenge
Will never end.
These things are passed on
From generation to generation –
Until, at last,
All their hunger for retribution
And vengeance is unleashed.
Then the abomination
Of our desolation
Is laid bare.
Then he said to the crowd, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross daily, and follow me” (Luke 9:23; NLT).
Here,
In my body,
My mind, heart,
And soul,
There is darkness,
And loneliness;
Silence,
And emptiness;
Thirsting,
And suffering;
Anguish,
And hopelessness;
Agony;
Loss –
And God;
And my cross.
At about three o’clock, Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” which means “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?” (Matthew 27:46; NLT).
Then Jesus shouted, “Father, I entrust my spirit into your hands!” And with those words he breathed his last (Luke 23:46; NLT).