Scripture:

"If someone says: "I love God and hates his
brother, he is a liar: For the one who does not
love his brother whom he has seen cannot love
God whom he has not seen. 21 And this
commandment we have from Him, that the one
who loves God should love his brother."
(1 John 4:20, 21)

"But love your enemies, and do good, and lend
expecting nothing in return, and your reward
will be great, and you will be sons of the Most
High: for He Himself is kind to ungrateful and
evil men. (Luke 6: 35)

Reflection:

What's it like to really hate, I'm not talking dislike,
I'm talking "hate". To actually know somebody
and really hate them. To know someone and feel
your life would be better if they didn't exist.
You know this is not just a personal thing with
someone you may know. This also concerns all
of us hating our neighbors and even our enemies.
So the question remains, How can we hate these
people whom we have seen and claim to love
God whom we have not seen. The Bible tells
us we can't. It should be noted here that often
our enemies may be unseen, their destruction
is not. These are not my words, but the words
of Holy Scripture. You see John tells us as
Christians, we cannot hate, because if we hate
we cannot love God. I don't know about you
but I love God, therefore I cannot hate my
brother or my enemy. Do me a favor will you,
keep this in mind the next time our enemies
do some terrible act against us, if you hate
them you cannot love God.

Prayer:

Thank you God for giving me a reason to
love and not hate. Thank you for the example
of Christ's ultimate love by giving His life
for me upon the cross. Thank you for the
strength and knowledge that love conquers
all. That love is the ultimate expression of
our Christian Faith. Thank you for Your love
and thank you GOD FOR BEING GOD.

Quote of the Day:

Muriel Lester
Social Activist, Gandhian Pacifist
(1883-1968)

"The job of the peacemaker is to stop war,
to purify the world, to get it saved from poverty
and riches, to heal the sick, to comfort the sad,
to wake up those who have not yet found God."

Scripture:

"Heaven and earth will pass away, but My
words will not pass away." Mark 13:31

Reflection:

When is the last time you read the Bible.
I'm not talking about just glancing through it
but really sitting down and reading the Holy
'Scriptures. Since its been a long time since
God spoke directly to me, I have found the
only way to receive God's words is to read
the Bible. You see that is one of the great
beauties of God manifesting Himself through
His Son Jesus and appearing on earth.
Through Jesus Christ we have received God's
words. And boy has the Bible helped me in
my life. Through the words of God (God
breathed) I have really discovered how to live
a happy and fulfilling life. There are two very
unique qualities about God's word. First is
that it's not like any book you have ever read.
You can begin reading anywhere in the Bible,
I don't care where, and you will begin to receive
a real message concerning your life. This makes
the Holy Scriptures truly unique. The Second
quality is that these words, God's words, will
last forever, and forever be near to us.
All things will pass away but not God's word.
What a comfort that is for us. Do me a favor
will you, tonight sit down and really look at
the Bible and I can promise you that you
will receive the riches of life. If you have
question you will surely get some answers.

Prayer:

Father God thank You for Your word. Thank
you for giving to me Your words that have
inspired my life. Thank you for caring
enough to give me guidance through your
words. THANK YOU GOD FOR BEING GOD!

Dear Lord,
So far I've done all right.
I haven't gossiped,
haven't lost my temper,
haven't been greedy, grumpy, nasty, selfish, or overindulgent.
I'm really glad about that.

But in a few minutes, God,
I'm going to get out of bed.
And from then on,
I'm going to need a lot more help.

Scripture: "For the which cause I also suffer
these things: Never less I am not ashamed: for I
know whom I have believed, and an persuaded
that he is able to keep that which I have
committed unto Him against that day.
(2 Timothy 1:12 KJV)

Reflection:

From childhood this lesson I have learned:
that losing always follows quitting. That
anyone who gives up really never reaches full
potential. People who give up really never
reach their ultimate goal. One of the
greatest winner's in history was Winston
Churchill. Here is an edited quote that he made
during the hight of WWII. " We shall go to the
end, we shall fight in France, we shall fight
on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with
confidence and growing strength in the air,
"we shall never surrender". Whether it's a
game, a business deal, or something in our
everyday living, we are not losers, we should
not give up. We should do all we can do,
because Christ is with us. According to
Timothy, because of my belief in Jesus Christ
I know that He is committed to be with me
against all the odds. How can I ever be a
loser with Jesus Christ on my side.

Prayer:

Thank you God that you did not create a
loser, thank you for your commitment
to me. THANK YOU GOD FOR BEING GOD.

Quote for the Day:

Jane Addams
Advocate for the Poor and Homeless
Recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize
(1860-1935)

"The good we secure for ourselves is precarious
and uncertain... until it is secured for all of us
and incorporated into our common life."