The great Fernandez purge of 2014 is still ongoing, and I found something over the weekend while I was cleaning out a box. It was Rayray’s Christmas wish list from 1999. It’s a small list of only 83 items, one of which is a “Persian cat for mom.” This list is cute or maybe it's troubling. I’m not sure, but I do know there are some gifts that are better than all the stuff on that paper.
Galatians 5:22-23 “What happens when we live God’s way? He brings gifts into our lives, much the same way that fruit appears in an orchard—things like affection for others, exuberance about life, serenity. We develop a willingness to stick with things, a sense of compassion in the heart, and a conviction that a basic holiness permeates things and people. We find ourselves involved in loyal commitments, not needing to force our way in life, able to marshal and direct our energies wisely.”
We get ourselves on the gift list by living life God’s way, and believe it or not, it can all be summed up in one sentence: Love others as you love yourself.
Six words – that’s it! The antidote for everything we read about yesterday – loneliness, joylessness, dissatisfaction, emotional garbage, a brutal temper etc…is to love others as you love yourself.
I saw an article on-line yesterday entitled: The Secret of Being Happy. One of the keys to feeling bright and full of sunshine is to serve others.
That’s really no secret at all. The Bible encourages us over and over again to take care of others, put others first, and to love others with the same energy as we put into our own self-preservation.
When we do this we can expect everything it says in those verses above. I especially love the phrase “exuberance about life.” It’s actually so much more than being happy. It’s excitement, fervor, vitality, zest, eagerness, exhilaration, cheerfulness, AND happiness all rolled up in one!
That sounds so appealing to me. And that’s the kind of life I want for those I love as well.
PRAYER: Dear Lord, Thank You for encouraging us to think about others and reach out to others. Somehow, by blessing others, we walk away being blessed with the kind of life that’s worth living. In Jesus’name, AMEN~
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