Verse of the Day

34 "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35 By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." John 13:34-35

I must say that loving people is not always easy. Especially people who "do us wrong", so to speak. When you think about it, though, at some point we will do wrong to anyone who comes into our lives, and they will do us wrong. Why? That is just the nature of the beast. How many times have you snapped at someone that you love for no reason other than you had a bad day at work and they just happened to be there to get the blunt end of your bad day? How many times has petty jealousy caused you to say something spiteful? How many times have you lied to/about someone? My point is that we all do things to hurt others, even if we don't mean to. Some are outright malicious and deceptive, however others are just reactions based on our circumstances of the day.

The one consistency that the gospels in the New Testament show is the love Jesus had for everyone. He did not show prejudice with his love. He did not have selective love, mercy or compassion. It was for everyone. There were plenty who rejected that love, but none the less the love still existed.

Some of you may wonder how can we love others, especially if we don't know them, or if they are not "good" people? Are any of us good? I'm not. I try to do the right thing, but sometimes I fail miserably. However, the awesome gift that Jesus gave when he sacrificed his life for us is the gift of the Holy Spirit. The awareness of God in me changed my life completely, and I see people differently. All people. If we really surrender our lives to the Lord, and try walk with the Spirit, it will change us. I am such a different person, and it cannot be describe or explained by anything natural. It's a supernatural, God thing, and loving others is the same way. Look at the need, rather than the problem.