The Power of Love

What has a grasp on me? What consumes the greatest portion of my emotions and thoughts? What has captured me? What controls me?

Does worry and stress consume my thoughts and emotions? Am I anxious, restless and unable to sleep? Or, maybe do I sleep too much?

Over time, if you have given your mind the authority through your own understanding to give you truth, you may be “held captive to empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world”. Then, when deception creeps in, it is powerful to influence our minds to develop confidences in false beliefs deep within our subconscious that we struggle to recognize and define.

Foundational to most of our vulnerability to the power of Satan’s lies and deception is pain and fear. We are a dependent people attempting to be self-sufficient. Fears arise because although we are attempting to remain confident in our own self, we are well aware of the possibility of failure. Failure is a painful experience to those whose confidence in who they are is depepedent upon "measuring up". The fear of even the possibilty of failure is painful.

Pride also develops. The pride we develop from believing Satan's lies has lead us into a performance oriented perception of life and has alienated us from experiencing God who resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. The fear of failure, the fear of not being acceptable and included, the fear of punishment and condemnation and shame could be dominant forces in our lives even despite the creeds of our faith. Not only will these fears contribute to unhealthy earthly relations but they may even define and dictate our experience with God so that we fear we are not welcome in his presence or that we can enjoy him.

Yes, the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and as the song Amazing Grace says “T'was Grace that taught my heart to fear.” However, the song also rightly continues “And Grace, my fears relieved.” Finally, the power of Love! As John says “Such love has no fear because perfect love expels all fear. If we are afraid, it is for fear of judgment, and this shows that his love has not been perfected in us.”

Wow! I pray for every reader. “And may you have the power to understand, as all God's people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love really is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is so great you will never fully understand it. Then you will be filled with the fullness of life and power that comes from God. Now glory be to God! By his mighty power at work within us, he is able to accomplish infinitely more than we would ever dare to ask or hope.”

May the Love of God and your experience with him consume you and control you. In Christ you are complete and you are welcome in God’s presence to experience the fullness of joy. This pressing burden that we must "measure up" so that we are acceptable as individuals has been satisfied by Christ. He met all the requirements of perfection for us. All because he loves us. Now we are released from fear and the burden of pride. We are who we are in Christ. Wow, the power of love to cast out fear.