Tag Archives: love

Love

Diversity of Hearing

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Achieving diversity of thought is important in many areas of life.

Many efforts are taken to create teams with diverse backgrounds and unique experiences to achieve diversity of thought.

Yet, the problem still remains that there is a lack of hearing and incorporating those thoughts.

The issue to face now is one of a need for diversity of hearing. And taking time to understand those unique perspectives and incorporating those thoughts into the fabric that is the team or community we live in.

This you know, my beloved brethren. But everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger; for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God.
James 1:19‭-‬20 NASB

Faith, Life, Love

The Hate U Give

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This week my company offered the opportunity for all of us to watch, and discuss in many open forum locations, the movie The Hate U Give.

I am so grateful that I had the opportunity to watch this movie at work with people from so many different ethnic/cultural/socio-economic backgrounds. And to discuss the issues together, in open dialog and with a tone of respect and even love, was eye opening.

Many of the topics we discussed were not new to me. I’ve been an manager and in the corporate world for over sixteen years and we have training on diversity and inclusion.

But this movie and the open discussions following were a little more eye opening and emotional. To see a Vice President, who is a black man, that I respect and have worked with many times over the years, tear up about the unconscious bias that he and his sons face, touched my heart and mind in a way I can’t fully describe.

I want to do all that I can to make sure that my children understand that we live in a complex environment with experiences that shape all of us and we must take time to try and learn from each other.

This is not just a nice thing to do. This is a God thing to do. God is love (1 John 4:7-8). Loving our neighbor means we need to try and understand what they are dealing with without taking sides all the time based on a group we are pushed into by the media or our own family.

Take a minute to educate yourself on what these terms mean and do research to help understand the historical issues that have shaped the people around you. And take time to watch this movie. I promise it is worth it to help understand how to better love your neighbor.

Faith

You Can’t Have It Your Way. God Is Not Burger King

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Picking and choosing the attributes of God that fit your lifestyle is a dangerous practice.

God isn’t a customizable coffee beverage or burger that you can make your way. You don’t get to pick only the attributes you like and leave behind the ones you don’t.

God is love and God is holy. God is merciful and God is just. He will forgive our sins and He will punish us for sin. You can’t have one attribute without the other.

Punishment is required for sin and a just God will hand down punishment.

But Jesus took our punishment on Himself. For those who believe in Jesus we are forgiven. Believe in Him and receive that forgiveness.

God’s just and holy nature means we can’t be with Him and have sin ruling in our life. Yet God’s love gave us Jesus to remediate the sin found in us.

Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death. For what the Law could not do, weak as it was through the flesh, God did: sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and as an offering for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh, so that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

Romans 8:1‭-‬4 NASB

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Life, Love

Husbands, Love Your Wives

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Since it is Valentine’s Day week, we should take a second and review some instructions from Paul on how husbands are to love your wives.

Please add to this discussion in the comments and help your brothers out.

There is no “if your wife” qualification in these statements from Paul (quoted below).

Husbands, we are called to love our wives the same way Christ loved the church. That’s a big deal. Christ gave His life for the church. He didn’t just die on the cross for the church, He gave His life to and for the church.

What does that mean? It means that in life Christ nurtured the church through the Word and deeds with grace, truth and love. Even when He was rejected by His own (John 1).

If your wife doesn’t do her part, that is no reason not to do your part.

Men,

  • Love your wife even when you don’t feel loved
  • Love your wife when you are stressed at work
  • Love your wife when neither of you have time to clean the house
  • Love your wife when you get home from work and still need to mow the grass
  • Love your wife when Ramen noodles or Totino’s pizza is what’s for dinner
  • Love your wife when the finances are not in order

Love does not mean you always give in to her every request. It just means that you are kind and understanding and explain your reasoning when you sometimes don’t agree. And you do apologize or change your mind when she points out a flaw or an error in your reasoning. Even is she doesn’t reciprocate, you lead by example.

Your wife wants your attention when she speaks. Practice active communication techniques. Just as you do at work, show respect in your communications. I am not perfect on this either, so don’t think I’m pretending like I’ve achieved perfection on this. I fail at it.

Here is the main point, you lead by example. Be an example to your wife, to your sons and to your daughters. Show them what it means to be a husband living on Biblical principles.

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, So husbands ought also to love their own wives as their own bodies. He who loves his own wife loves himself; for no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ also does the church, because we are members of His body.
Ephesians 5:25‭, ‬28‭-‬30 NASB
https://bible.com/bible/100/eph.5.25-30.NASB

If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I surrender my body to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing. Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
1 Corinthians 13:1‭-‬7 NASB
https://bible.com/bible/100/1co.13.1-7.NASB

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Love & Respect: The Love She Most Desires, the Respect He Desperately Needs

Life, Love

Strengthening Your Marriage Bond

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Valentine’s day is a highly commercialized day filled with overly compelled expressions of love. Isn’t it a wonderful feeling to receive those highly suggested and semi-heartfelt gifts from your spouse or significant other. I’m joking, but sometimes if feels true.

One thing that is important about Valentine’s Day is that it reminds us to show love. Yet, one act on one day of the year is not sufficient.

Many men have a difficult time showing the love that they feel in their heart.

Let me admit that many times I don’t hit the mark for showing love the way my wife and kids need to see it. Although, I do try purposefully to do so. I love my wife and kids and nothing will change that. But, if they don’t know I love them it can strain our relationship and cause feelings of insecurity in them, even if it is only sub-consciously.

Men, we have to show love consistently. And we must do it in a way that can feel really uncomfortable for us sometimes. You know what I mean, I’m talking about mooshy-gooshy affection stuff that we don’t always feel like doing.

Here are some examples of how to show love and it doesn’t cost any money to do it:

  • Hug your kids and say “I love you”
  • Hug your wife and say “I love you”, long hugs that mean something
  • Hug your wife in front of your kids until the kids make gagging noises
  • Actively listen to your wife and kids (That means looking at them and engaging in the conversation)
  • Occasionally watch that movie with your wife that you really don’t want to watch
  • Hold hands with your wife in public, she is your bride
  • things like the above list that are not always comfortable for you

Here are some examples that are not necessarily showing love, these are things that you just need to help do sometimes:

  • Wash the dishes
  • Wash the kid’s clothes
  • Hang up the kid’s clothes
  • Clean some part of the house
  • things like the above that are not related to showing affection

Over my 16 years of marriage I’ve had to learn this, and I am still learning. One of the books that I read to help me better understand my gaps in showing love and how to understand what my wife needs is Love & Respect by Dr. Emerson Eggerich. I would encourage all of my readers husband or wife to read this book. It will help you better understand your spouse’s emotional needs.

February is a great time to start a new marriage study with your wife, this is one way to take the lead in spiritual growth in your marriage and be actively engaged in relational growth with you wife.

Below is my affiliate link to the book. There are also workbooks and digital versions. I hope you take the time to read this book with your spouse even if you have been married for a few years. I went through this book after my wife and I had been married for four years.

Love & Respect: The Love She Most Desires, the Respect He Desperately Needs

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