The Plumbline

Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other. No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love is brought to full expression in us. (I John 4:11-12 NLT) Full expression of God's love through us. Isn't it amazing that the unseen God can be 'seen' through the actions of love that exist in our lives? God lives in us - those words ought to make us sit up and take notice of our behavior, shouldn't they? If we would stop for just a moment before we acted or responded, considering that he resides in our hearts, we might just respond a bit differently! His love is BROUGHT to full expression in us - when we love one another, we are bringing others into his presence.  And God has given us his Spirit as proof that we live in him and he in us. Furthermore, we have seen with our own eyes and now testify that the Father sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. All who declare that Jesus is the Son of God have...

Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take. (Proverbs 3:5-6 NLT) I have heard it said that "if you don't change direction, you may end up where you are headed." (Lao Tzu) The direction one assumes is the direction one will head. It is a mystery to me why some bemoan the outcome they get when they were headed in that direction all the time. It isn't that they didn't take notice of their course. They just didn't seem to change direction when they realized they weren't on the right course! If we were to be honest here, we have all chosen a wrong direction or two in life, not heeding the warnings along the way, depending more on our 'understanding' than seeking God's wisdom. The determination of course was entirely ours. The outcome produced wasn't great. The moments getting from here to there were riddled with issues. Yet we chose to '...