August 23, 2021 … Loving the Unloveable …

Berry Patch Devotions in 2021 - Day 235 

Devotional Song: ... GO TO THIS LINK ...  Please take the time to take in song and lyrics from Danny Gokey singing  … Love God - Love People … poignantly singing of how we Christians need to love God so that we can love people … yes, ALL PEOPLE … like Jesus loves us. 

==============

Highlight Passage:  Acts 1:8 [NLT] …  

8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” 

… Jesus’ commission to His disciples to be His witnesses EVERYWHERE.                

=============  

Highlight Passage [Context]: …  Acts 1:1-8 [NLT] …  USE THIS LINK … 

…  Jesus, at His ascension, tells His disciples (and that’s us too!!) to be His witnesses throughout the world.         

==============                               

Reference Passage: … Luke 6:27-36 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK ...  

… Jesus preaches to His followers and disciples (and that’s us!!) to love EVERYONE, … yes, even our enemies.  

Reference Passage: … Romans 12:9-14 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK ... 

… God, thru Paul, teaching on loving one another - yes, even the unloveable.  

Reference Passage: … 1Corinthians 13:4-7 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK  ...

… God, thru Paul, giving the Church the Christlike qualities of love. 

Reference Passage: … 2Timothy 2:23-26 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK ... 

… teaching Timothy, and all Christians, on how to deal with difficult, and often foolish, people, … showing them Christlike love. 

My Devotional Journal: Today's Our Daily Bread author, Mike Wittmer AT THIS LINK  … confesses a situation where he did all he could to dodge confronting a person he found difficult to deal with and knowing that person was irritated by the ODB author.   

 

Oh, that’s so, SO me!  … I often will take any road to skirt having to confront someone I find unloveable, even tho I know what my Savior preached to His followers - and to disciples like those of us who call ourselves “Christians,” to love EVERYONE, … yes even our enemies.  And if my readers have taken in the charge of Jesus  (in the Acts 1 and Luke 6 passages), we should, not only be willing to confront unlovable people; but, we, … as disciples of Christ, … should do all we can to love others like Jesus loves us.  And I don’t know about you, my fellow Christian; but we. at times, must be very unloveable followers to our Lord, … Who loved us enough to die for us on a cross, … and Who loves us enough today to always be with us as we try to be His witnesses.   

So, how about today … we all go about dealing with the unloveable, … yes, even our enemies, … like Jesus was - AND IS - willing to deal with us.   

My THANKFULNESS:... Oh, Abba Father, thank You, King Jesus, … for loving a very unloveable me. 

My Prayer Today:  Oh Abba Father, ... King Jesus, ... . I pray that all reading here will join me, …  to reach out, as You call us, Lord, to love the unloveable.    … 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.