I'm sharing those first writings again, as we make another move, and I anticipate my time at the computer to be more focused on getting the work done on that handbook on Missionary Care.
I hope that you enjoy these entries as much as I do. I have NO idea where this journey will go, as I was as irregular a writer then as I am now! :) Some things never change!
Be blessed!
Marina
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Someone Loves YOU!!
“May you experience the love of Christ, though it is so
great that you will never understand it.
Then you will be filled with the fullness of
life and power that comes from God.” Ephesians 3:19 NLT
For each of us, there is a different reason that we came to
Christ. Some have grown up with a relationship with Jesus. Some find themselves
in awe of God, the Creator. Some of us just want to be loved, and we realize
that the only love that will not disappoint is the love of Jesus Christ.
To me, the Bible is a love story. We were created in His
image, to have fellowship with Him because He loved us. In the New Testament,
our Savior is born a child (and who doesn’t love a baby?) only to grow into a
man that gives his own life for our sins…out of His great love for us. Sacrificial Love.
In Brennan Manning’s book
The Ragamuffin Gospel, he tells of his historical findings while
in the Deep South. The phrase “born again” was seldom, if ever used in the
Christian community. However, it was commonly said that “I was seized by the
power of a great affection” to describe the personal breakthrough of a
relationship with Jesus Christ. Mr. Manning continues, “These words describe
both the initiative of God and the explosion within the heart when Jesus,
instead of being a face on a holy card with long hair and a robe with many
folds, becomes real, alive, and Lord of one’s personal and professional life.
Seized by the power of a great affection was a visceral description of the
phenomenon of Pentecost, authentic conversion, and the release of the Holy
Spirit. The phrase lent new meaning to the old Russian proverb, “Those who have
the disease called Jesus will never be cured.”” Well, AMEN!
The love of Jesus is
what drew me to Him. The motivation of my young, promiscuous life was looking
for unconditional love. When the search left me broken hearted, broken bodied,
and depressed, I cried out “IF there is a God, he had better meet me here,
because I don’t want to live any more!!” Surprise of all surprises, He met me
there. It was no longer my way, because my way didn’t work. I was finally
willing to accept His love and His ways. It was still with a struggle that I
learned what He had to offer me, and that I would have to change my ways. He
was patient (and still is!) and continued to teach me, the whole time showing
me His perfect unconditional love. I learned that He doesn’t expect us to come
to Him after we clean up our lives, that is a job that He cherishes. Like
lovingly rebuilding an old house, or restoring a classic car, He removes the
layers of what doesn’t work, or what is broken down, and replaces it with His
new way, His new part, His new heart. Slowly we mend. Sometimes I would think
that the old way was better, and He would gently pick me up, clean me off, and
remind me that I am worth so much more now. He changed me from the inside out.
I was seized by the power of HIS great affection.
So now I have the disease called Jesus, and I don’t seek to
be cured! I am addicted to His love, pure and perfect. I am willing to wait on
Him, for Him, and with Him. I desire to infect as many other people as possible
with this disease, so that it becomes an epidemic. I am willing to allow it to
change my whole life. I expect that it will change, and I can trust Him
with it, because HE LOVES ME!!
Do you desire true love? Well, let me remind you…
There
IS someone who loves you very much. He gave His life for you, and He desires to
spend eternity with you. Every moment of every day He desires to spend with
you. To tell you secrets and share His vision of the future He is planning with
you. He wants you to love Him more than any other thing, and expects you to
spend the most important parts of your day with Him. He is hurt when you do
things that disappoint Him, but He is always willing to forgive you. He loves
the sound of your voice. He loves to hear your dreams, your desires, but loves
it most when you are willing to listen to His dreams, His desires for your
life. He has written you a book, and it He loves when you read it, as it allows
you to learn more of Him. He knows that the more time you spend together, you
will become more like Him. Only then will you be able to love others the way
that He loves you…unconditionally.
If it were an earthly person that this was about, most women
would go crazy!! To think that there was a man out there who wanted these
things…writing me books, spending time with me, listening to me?? It would be a
dream come true!! The fact is, that He does exist. He does love us this way,
and that is what our heart longs for. The only problem is that we expect that
longing to be filled by a person. Imperfect, broken, yet what every romance
novel leads us to believe is the only solution. Fall in love….it will satisfy
all your longings….NOT! Only Jesus’ love will fill those longings. He
made us with a hole that can only be filled with Him. When we allow ourselves
to fall in love with Him, we are then made whole. We are then seized by the
power of a great affection. It changes us. We are His, willingly surrendering
our wants for His needs. Only then we
are made complete.
That is where my journey began, with the search for true
love. It has led me on a wonderful walk with Him. Oh, there are valleys that
have been dark and difficult, but I have not ever been alone. There have been
times that I have chosen my own path, refused to walk in His ways, and I have
had to suffer the consequences of those choices. Still, He has never left my side. He has shown me the beauty in those valleys,
and the glory of the mountain tops. Just as each season has its' own qualities,
I have things to learn in each season of life. I have experienced true love. I
have been loved. I have loved. I will love, with His love in me. I am seized by
the power of a great affection. This is what love is all about.
Blessings,
marina
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~marina