Footsteps In The Valley: Love, Love, Love!

Thursday, March 22, 2007

Love, Love, Love!

I love listening to music. Maybe it’s because to me, music is poetry with a sound that reaches your heart and soul in a way nothing else can. For the most part I listen to contemporary Christian music. I always have His Radio on in my car to and from work. It is a great way to pull my focus to where it should be in the morning and it helps me leave work behind by refocusing my attention on God when I leave work. It has been so amazing and such a blessing how God sometimes picks just the right song I need to hear, for something I am dealing with at the time. I think of it this way… Sometimes I listen to CD’s to the music that is my choice and when I listen to the radio I often pray that God choose the music He thinks I need to hear. So I let God pick out my music too. Now you may jest but before you are too critical of what I just said you might want to try it. I can’t count the number of times He has blessed me with selections I truly believe came from Him.

I do listen to other music too. There is some wonderful music out there in other styles. I have a real weakness for the blues and jazz when I am working on my art work and there are times when my heart just wants to hear some love songs. They can be the classics or more current hits. There is just something about a love song (I am sure this is probably more of a female thing. Men let me know if I am wrong about this.) that can touch my heart the way no other music can. I heard this love song by Monica the other day and it made me stop to think about how strong the emotion of love is.

For You I Will

By Monica

When you're feeling lost in the night,
When you feel your world just ain't right
Call on me, I will be waiting
Count on me, I will be there
Anytime the times get too tough,
Anytime your best ain't enough
I'll be the one to make it better,
I'll be there to protect you,
See you through,
I'll be there and there is nothing
I won't do.

I will cross the ocean for you
I will go and bring you the moon
I will be your hero your strength
Anything you need
I will be the sun in your sky
I will light your way for all time
Promise you,
For you I will.

I will shield your heart from the rain
I will let no harm come your way
Oh these arms will be your shelter
No these arms won't let you down,
If there is a mountain to move
I will move that mountain for you
I'm here for you, I'm here forever
I will be your fortress, tall and strong
I'll keep you safe,
I'll stand beside you, right or wrong

I will cross the ocean for you
I will go and bring you the moon (yeah, yeah)
I will be your hero your strength
Anything you need (I will be..)
I will be the sun in your sky
I will light your way for all time
Promise you
For you I will

For you I will, lay my life on the line
For you I will fight, oooooh
For you I will die
With every breath, with all my soul
I'll give my world
I'll give it all
Put your faith in me (put you're faith in me)
And I'll do anything

I will cross the ocean for you
(I will cross the ocean for you)
I will go and bring you the moon
I will be your hero your strength
Anything you need
I will be the sun in your sky
I will light your way for all time
Promise you (Promise you)
For you I will, I will, I will, I will,

I will cross the ocean for you
I will go and bring you the moon
I will be your hero your strength
Anything you need, (Anything you need)
I will be the sun in your sky (yeah, yeah)
I will let you wait for all times
Promise you (I promise you)
For you I will (Ooooh)
I promise you
For you I will

Have you ever stopped to think how many love songs have been written? How many you’ve done me wrong songs or my heart is broken songs have been written? Oh please don’t include the in lust songs. So many people confuse being in lust with being in love these days.

Love is the strongest emotion we have. Love can make our lives and it can destroy them too when it is betrayed or not returned. We think how tragic when some one loves another the way this song illustrates it and the love is not returned. Oh but how beautiful it is when both feel this kind of love.

Now look at this song again and imagine Jesus singing it to you. This is how our loving Savior feels for us. He is always there for us when we are in need of Him. He wants us to come to Him when we can’t handle things. He has already endured the pain and suffering on the cross to give His life for us. He can move mountains for us if it is God’s will that they be moved. The only part of the song that is not true is the part where it says, “I’ll do anything for you”. The one thing Jesus would not do is sin. Satan tempted Jesus but He would not be moved. He is our hero and our greatest strength. What He offers us is salvation and that is greater than anything of this world he could give us.

The Bible speaks many times of love. According to the website, http://www.christianbiblereference.org/faq_WordCount.htm
The word love appears in the King James version of the Bible 310 times, New American Standard Version - 1995 ed. 348 times, New International Version 551 times, and New Revised Standard Version 538 times.

1 John 4:16 says, “God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them.” When we love God, God’s love lives in us and shines out from us for all to see. The Bible even tells us that the most important thing is our love for God. You can find this in Mark 12:28-30, “One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, ‘Of all the commandments, which is the most important?’ ‘The most important one,’ answered Jesus, is this: 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.'"

God also expects us to share His love with others. 1 John 4:19-21 says, “We love because he first loved us. Those who say, ‘I love God,’ and hate their brothers or sisters, are liars; for those who do not love a brother or sister whom they have seen, cannot love God whom they have not seen. The commandment we have from him is this: those who love God must love their brothers and sisters also.”

The Bible also gives us a guide to judge what true love is. Paul wrote in
1 Corinthians 13:4-8, 13 “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails…And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”

Here are two websites you can go to for great love songs and lyrics http://www.romantic-lyrics.com/ and http://www.jamesness.com/index.html . Check them out. Now ask yourself, “Does my love for God come first in my life, above and beyond all else? When I listen to love songs (not lust songs) do I feel that way about God? Am I willing to give up my life and be born again in faith as Jesus gave up His life for us so that we might have eternal life?

God wants us to feel love for Him the way that He feels love for us. He also wants us to reach out to others in love so that they may seek His love too. Before we seek to find love with another person we should first seek love from our Heavenly Father. His love is the only love that is perfect and will not let us down. Once we are immersed in His love, we will then have a model to follow and judge others with to see where they are in their faith. Are they "Real Men" and "Real Women" of faith that know what true love is? Do not get so obsessed and wrapped up in finding a partner to love that you miss out on feeling all the love around you that is offered to you. Build on your love with God, build on your love with your family, build on your love with your friends, build on your love with fellow Christians, build on your love with strangers by reaching out to them, and build on your love by being a servant to those in need.

True love is not that complicated because true love is an unselfish love that shows how much they value that love 24/7. It can be found in very simple things. One of the simplest love songs written still touches my heart so deeply. It says what love is in only six lines. Now you might interpret it (and it may have been written) as wanting to make love, but I have always seen this song in the purest form. Read it in that frame of mind and you can see how we can feel about God when we are saved. You can then also see how we can feel when we have true love in our hearts.

Colour My World

By James Pankow
Sung By Chicago

As time goes on, I realize
Just what you mean to me.
And now, now that you're near,
Promise your love that I've waited to share
And dreams of our moments together.
Color my world with hopes of loving you.

There is one other old song (Now I am dating myself. LOL) that I really like and want to share with you. The song again is a simple on that is done almost completely in similes (making comparisons to things using the word like or as). Read the lyrics to this song and then I have a challenge for you. If you were to write a song about God, Jesus, or the Holy Spirit what similes would you use? If you come up with any good poems or lists of similes, please post them in the comments.

Fine As Fine Can Be

By Gordon Lightfoot

You're as soft as the rose
You're as sweet as the honey
You're as warm as the bright morning sun
You're as cool as the breeze
on the last days of April
You're as fine as fine can be

You're like time is to space
You're like faith is to trustin'
You're like blue is to feelin' unkind
You're like joy is for love,
You're like dreams are for chasin'
You're as fine as fine can be

And when I am gone
my thoughts are all with you
You're my little angel you see
You're as bright as the moon
You're as light as a feather
You're as fine as fine can be

Like the rain is for the crops
You're like food for my thoughts
You're like true is for knowin' what's not
You're like leaves are for trees
You're like bees are for buzzin'
You're as fine as fine can be

You're as bright as the moon
You're as light as a feather
You're as fine as fine can be

Please remember to select the link below for More Footsteps In The Valley, to find the prayer that goes with this message. Take care and God bless.

FaithfulToOne©2007

No comments:

Post a Comment

GOD GIVES US HOPE

HOPE_________________________ _____________________________ God is my comfort _______________ When I grow weak_______________ His love and grace_______________ Are what I seek_________________ _____________________________ Through Almighty God____________ There is Hope__________________ _____________________________ I will soar like an eagle____________ With strong open wings___________ Singing praises to Him____________ Like an angel sings_______________ _____________________________ Through our Praise______________ There is Hope__________________ _____________________________ I will not grow weary_____________ As I continue to run______________ My strength is renewed___________ By God’s only Son_______________ ____________________________ Through our Savior______________ There is Hope__________________ _____________________________ I will seek the Lord______________ For all that I need_______________ It is only with Him______________ That I can succeed______________ ____________________________ Through the Cross______________ There is Hope_________________ ___________________________ My heart fills with joy____________ During dark lonely hours__________ God’s love poured out to me________ With the Holy Spirit’s powers_______ _____________________________ Through the Holy Spirit___________ There is Hope__________________ ____________________________ I cling to the Word _____________ As my faithful guide ____________ Scriptures direct me____________ God always at my side___________ ___________________________ Through the Bible______________ There is Hope_________________ _____________________________ I pray for His wisdom_____________ To quench my soul_______________ With prayers I give Him___________ Complete control________________ _____________________________ Through our Prayers_____________ There is Hope__________________ ____________________________ My blessings come______________ With trust in the Lord___________ He is my strong shield___________ And my battle sword____________ ____________________________ Through our Trust______________ There is Hope_________________ ____________________________ My faith growing stronger_________ With sincere dedication__________ Inspired by Christ’s love__________ And His promise of salvation______ ____________________________ Through our Faith______________ There is Hope__________________ ____________________________ I pray for your new faith _________ Please search from within________ Believe in Jesus Christ___________ Free the chains of your sin________ ____________________________ Being Born Again_______________ Is our only True Hope____________ ________________________ FaithfulToOne © 1999______ _________________________ _________________________ Psalm 25:5_________________ guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long. ___________________________ Psalm 31:24 __________________ Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the LORD. ___________________________ Psalm 33:2 __________________ May your unfailing love rest upon us, O LORD, even as we put our hope in you._______ ___________________________ Psalm 62:5 ___________________ Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from him. ____________________ ____________________________ Psalm 119:114 _________________ You are my refuge and my shield; I have put my hope in your word. _________________ ___________________________ Psalm 130:5 __________________ I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in his word I put my hope. _________________ ___________________________ Jeremiah 23:16 _______________ This is what the LORD Almighty says: "Do not listen to what the prophets are prophesying to you; they fill you with false hopes. They speak visions from their own minds, not from the mouth of the LORD. ___________________________ Jeremiah 29:11________________ For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. ___________________________ Lamentations 3:25 ____________ The LORD is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him; _________ ___________________________ Romans 12:12 ________________ Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. _____________________ ___________________________ Romans 15:4_________________ For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. _______________________ ____________________________ Romans 15:13 _________________ May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.______ ____________________________ 1 Timothy 6:17_________________ Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.