Devotional Song: … GO TO THIS LINK …Please take the time to take in a YouTube video of the Maranatha seiners singing … I Love You Lord … poignantly singing of how we simply give ourselves to our Lord to receive His love in return.
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Highlight Verse[s]: Jeremiah 9:24 [NLT] … 24 But those who wish to boast should boast in this alone: that they truly know Me and understand that I am the Lord who demonstrates unfailing love
… We must boast of ONLY one thing … that we live for God’s love.
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Highlight Passage [context]: Jeremiah 9:23-26 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… God, thru the Prophet shows that our boasting should only be in our relationship with the Lord.
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Reference Passage : … Luke 9:23 [NLT] … 23 Then He said to the crowd, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross daily, and follow me.
… All Jesus wants of us is to open ourselves to others as He would have us follow His ways.
Reference Passage : … John 3:16 [NLT] … 16 “For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.
… God’s love is complete and eternal for any/all who believe in Him enough to give up themselves for HIm.
Reference Passage : … John 14:21 [NLT] … 21 Those who accept my commandments and obey them are the ones who love me. And because they love me, my Father will love them. And I will love them and reveal myself to each of them.”
… Jesus shows who are the ones who REALLY love Him.
My Devotional Journal: Today's ODB author, John Blase, uses an illustration out of classic children’s literature to teach on the value of being real. … The ODB author wrote: What does it mean to be real? That’s the very big question answered in the small children’s book The Velveteen Rabbit. It’s the story of toys in a nursery and the velveteen rabbit’s journey to become real by allowing himself to be loved by a child. One of the other toys is the old and wise Skin Horse. [See photo] He “had seen a long succession of mechanical toys arrive to boast and swagger, and by and by break . . . and pass away.” They looked and sounded impressive, but their bragging eventually amounted to nothing when it came to love.
It is our nature - our very HUMAN nature - which would lead us to hide ourselves behind masks which make us look better than we really are to others. Being real requires that we take off the masks and show others who we really are, … revealing the one whom Christ died to save (see John 3:16).
All the Velveteen Rabbit wanted to do was to be loved by her owner. And really that’s all we want to do with our “Owner,” our Lord, King Jesus, isn’t it?
But to share in the complete and unqualified love of the One Who saved us, is to deny ourselves and obey His will and His ways [see Luke 9:23]. And when we do, His love is ours … COMPLETELY [see John 14:21]!!
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My THANKFULNESS: … Oh Abba Father, … thank You, Lord, … for Your “agape,” which requires only that I believe in You as my Lord and Savior. And I do!!
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My Prayer Today: Oh Abba Father, … King Jesus, … I pray, Lord, that all reading here can, and will, join me to be the one He saved … for real!! … Amen
Blogger Note: Everyday during this year, my daily devotional blogs are influenced by the reading and study of the online devotional blog entitled “Our Daily Bread,” distributed online via email by RBC Ministries. If you GO TO THIS LINK on the date of my blog, you can read/study the ODB blogs; or you can subscribe to the blog via email at that site.
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