And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. ~Ephesians 3:17-19 (NIV)
When we are filled with God, we are filled with love. Paul prayed for the Ephesians to be rooted and established in love so that they may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. The “love walk” is a path we must choose every day and it begins with putting God and others first and to do that we have to get ourselves off our mind. Have you ever noticed how much you think about yourself; what you need, what you want, what makes you happy or sad or mad? When was the last time you thought about what God wanted? When was the last time you asked Him to show you what you could do today to put a smile on His face? How about your spouse, your kids or even your neighbor? Do you think about how you are going to serve those around you in love as opposed to how you are going to get served today? Loving people is always going to put a smile on the Lord's face, and we could all use a little more discipline in putting others first. Romans 12:10 teaches us “Love one another with brotherly affection [as members of one family], giving precedence and showing honor to one another.” (AMP) Giving preference to others is going to require us to readjust our thinking. It’s going to require us to think on purpose. Just like we would when have to set our minds to a specific task or duty. We don’t have any problem thinking on purpose when we study for a test or when we are about to give a speech. We meditate over the material with precision and purpose. If we want to be infused with the character of God and exemplify His love and grace in our generation, we are going to have to do the same thing with the Word of God and we are going to have to set our mind to put ourselves on the back burner and start proactively looking for opportunities to show the love of God and serve others.
We are all born with a nature that says, “Me first”. We plan to be first without even knowing it. We have to stop for a minute and refocus to be able to say, “no I want to honor you and give you first place”. In Mark 10:29-31 Jesus is teaching His disciples the value of sacrificing our will for the sake of love saying “Truly I tell you,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age: homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—along with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last first.” (NIV) Giving up what we want to put others first not only honors God, but it is a light to the world. We are showing the love and character of our Father in Heaven when we humble ourselves and lovingly promote other people. In all your encounters learn to defer and give others first place. Let God promote you. He has promised that nothing you give up in this life for the sake of love will go unrewarded or uncompensated.
Whoever pursues righteousness and love finds life, prosperity and honor. ~Proverbs 21:21 (NIV)
Are you looking to serve or be served today? How will you accomplish your goal?
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