A
So I just saw this pamphlet/small book lying around and it was exactly what I needed to read and hear, God loves us so much. God is good, loving, and so ever completely awesome
I thought I might share some things from this book! called "How to Return to Our First Love" by Guillermo Maldonado.... and I own nothing Please enjoy this long wonderful piece, it's not all of it, but I just had to share it!!! Try not looking out how long it is and think "Oh golly" haha... but just read as much as you want and take what you can with it, just so much peace and love comes from this text, I love it!!! God bless everybody, I love you all. God loves you all!!!
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!We are more than conquerors through Jesus Christ, our Lord!
INTRODUCTION
As time passes, our first love loses many of its important characteristics. Sometimes, without realizing it, we get so involved in the cares and anxieties of this world that it affects our relationship with God; it begins to diminish, thus allowing the enemy to act and take over our hearts. On occasion, when we focus on our service to the Lord, we forget that beyond our service the most important thing in our lives should be the relationship that we have with our Heavenly Father. Although we know and understand that the "harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few," our service cannot be motivated by the obvious need to serve but by the will of God in our lives. Otherwise, we become one more member in the long line of those who feel "burned out". In every area of life, there has to be a balance to all things to ensure that our relationship with God, the King of kings and the Lord of lords, is not set aside.
"Nevertheless I have this against you. that you have left your first love." -Revelations 2:4
Every person experiences something special the moment that he truly receives Jesus as Lord and Savior of his life. When this happens, the world seems different; the sky appears more beautiful; an insatiable desire to tell the world about Jesus begins, regardless of the circumstance, the place, or the situation. We want to testify of His beauty and what He has done in our lives and in our hearts. We experience real love- the love that is pure and holy, and which is given by our beloved Jesus. When the "first love" takes place in our hearts, we are full of joy, faith, and hope; we never miss a worship service, we pray every day, study His Word, and we are more sensitive to God's presence. Jesus has first place in our lives.
WHAT IS THE FIRST LOVE?
The first love is when we first fall in love with Jesus. Because of that first love, we are able to testify and seek His face wholeheartedly without regards for the circumstances or the people around us. Jesus said that to lose our first love is a sin. "Nevertheless I have this against you. that you have left your first love." -Revelations 2:4
Every believer after receiving Jesus as Lord and Savior, begins to live in that first love for Him. However, after a time, many abandon Him they desert Him without realizing what they have done or that it is a sin.
WHAT HAPPENS AFTER A TIME?
Our love for the Lord begins to diminish and our spiritual life begins to dry up. We serve God without joy; we have a hard time finding enough reasons to serve or to spend time with Him. We stop attending the worship services as we did in the beginning, and we become "Sunday worshippers" only. Also, we stop missing the Lord's presence in our lives because we get to the point in which we think that we can live without it. Sadly, Jesus no longer has first place in our lives. To know if we have lost our first love, we need to examine our lives and carefully notice if we present any of the symptoms mentioned in this chapter.
WHAT SIGNS WARN US THAT WE HAVE LOST OUR FIRST LOVE FOR GOD?
1. Spiritual apathy
What is spiritual apathy? It is the lack of interest towards anything that has to do with God; it is hardened or extinguished emotions, passiveness and lack of interest. The opposite of being in love is not hate; it is indifference (lack of interest). When we lose our first love, we lose interest in the things of God and we begin to notice that everything becomes a routine. For instance, prayer, attending the worship services, praise, and serving God. Sometimes, even our close relationship with God becomes non-existent and we become vulnerable to gossip and criticism. We can say that apathy is a lack of interest in the things of God, in His Word, and in our service to Him. Commitment is the opposite of apathy. A true commitment to Jesus means to be dedicated, consecrated and living in total service to Him. When we lose our first love, the opposite happens.
2. Our hunger and desire for God diminishes
During the time when we experience our first love, we had great hunger and longing to study and learn His Word. We had great thirst for His presence and for prayer, but after a while, our emotions and desires begin to diminish.
3. We become insensitive to sin
We become numb to sin and begin to compromise principles. The things that used to make us feel bad no longer affect us. What we used to consider as bad, is now good and normal. When we were in our first love with Jesus, any improper attitude or action made us feel bad immediately, but now it does not faze us. We lose our fear of the Lord. Our conscience is calloused making it impossible for us to renounce sin.
4. We become insensitive and lack compassion for the needs of others
We know that we are insensitive when we see an individual in need and we feel no compassion or motivation to supply that need or to help end his grief. Instead of compassion, we feel completely indifferent towards the situation and unmotivated to do anything about it. This is indicative of an insensitive heart.
5. We become insensitive to God's presence and the anointing
Picture the following: Every person in the room is crying; they are practically melting in God's presence. We, on the other hand, are unaffected by what is happening around us; our hearts are hardened, our minds are someplace else and the only thing we want is for this moment to end as soon a possible. This indicates that we are not being touched or broken by His presence; the Holy Spirit passes by our side and we remain unaware of His presence.
These sins indicate that we have lost our first love. They are warning us of our spiritual condition. I want to ask yourself the following question: "Lately, am I disinterested in the thins of God?" "Has my desire and longing for His presence diminished?" "Do I care if my actions please or offend God?" "Am I unsympathetic towards the pain and suffering of others?" "Has a prolonged period of time passed without me feeling or experiencing God's presence?" If the answers to these questions are affirmative, then this means that you have lost your first love. It is important to understand that no one loses their first love from one day to the next. Spiritual frigidity is a process that takes time. We must detect the symptoms quickly an before it is too late, so that we can fight for and persevere in prayer. This will prevent our greatest treasure, our first love with our God, to be lost.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
There is so much more to this book, only getting started.... it's because I actually have to type every single word But no worries I want to type it all because it's really nice to see where I stand, to reflect on myself with my relationship with God. All is said in love
I thought I might share some things from this book! called "How to Return to Our First Love" by Guillermo Maldonado.... and I own nothing
Please enjoy this long wonderful piece, it's not all of it, but I just had to share it!!! Try not looking out how long it is and think "Oh golly" haha... but just read as much as you want and take what you can with it, just so much peace and love comes from this text, I love it!!! God bless everybody, I love you all. God loves you all!!!--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
!We are more than conquerors through Jesus Christ, our Lord!
INTRODUCTION
As time passes, our first love loses many of its important characteristics. Sometimes, without realizing it, we get so involved in the cares and anxieties of this world that it affects our relationship with God; it begins to diminish, thus allowing the enemy to act and take over our hearts. On occasion, when we focus on our service to the Lord, we forget that beyond our service the most important thing in our lives should be the relationship that we have with our Heavenly Father. Although we know and understand that the "harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few," our service cannot be motivated by the obvious need to serve but by the will of God in our lives. Otherwise, we become one more member in the long line of those who feel "burned out". In every area of life, there has to be a balance to all things to ensure that our relationship with God, the King of kings and the Lord of lords, is not set aside.
"Nevertheless I have this against you. that you have left your first love." -Revelations 2:4
Every person experiences something special the moment that he truly receives Jesus as Lord and Savior of his life. When this happens, the world seems different; the sky appears more beautiful; an insatiable desire to tell the world about Jesus begins, regardless of the circumstance, the place, or the situation. We want to testify of His beauty and what He has done in our lives and in our hearts. We experience real love- the love that is pure and holy, and which is given by our beloved Jesus. When the "first love" takes place in our hearts, we are full of joy, faith, and hope; we never miss a worship service, we pray every day, study His Word, and we are more sensitive to God's presence. Jesus has first place in our lives.
WHAT IS THE FIRST LOVE?
The first love is when we first fall in love with Jesus. Because of that first love, we are able to testify and seek His face wholeheartedly without regards for the circumstances or the people around us. Jesus said that to lose our first love is a sin. "Nevertheless I have this against you. that you have left your first love." -Revelations 2:4
Every believer after receiving Jesus as Lord and Savior, begins to live in that first love for Him. However, after a time, many abandon Him they desert Him without realizing what they have done or that it is a sin.
WHAT HAPPENS AFTER A TIME?
Our love for the Lord begins to diminish and our spiritual life begins to dry up. We serve God without joy; we have a hard time finding enough reasons to serve or to spend time with Him. We stop attending the worship services as we did in the beginning, and we become "Sunday worshippers" only. Also, we stop missing the Lord's presence in our lives because we get to the point in which we think that we can live without it. Sadly, Jesus no longer has first place in our lives. To know if we have lost our first love, we need to examine our lives and carefully notice if we present any of the symptoms mentioned in this chapter.
WHAT SIGNS WARN US THAT WE HAVE LOST OUR FIRST LOVE FOR GOD?
1. Spiritual apathy
What is spiritual apathy? It is the lack of interest towards anything that has to do with God; it is hardened or extinguished emotions, passiveness and lack of interest. The opposite of being in love is not hate; it is indifference (lack of interest). When we lose our first love, we lose interest in the things of God and we begin to notice that everything becomes a routine. For instance, prayer, attending the worship services, praise, and serving God. Sometimes, even our close relationship with God becomes non-existent and we become vulnerable to gossip and criticism. We can say that apathy is a lack of interest in the things of God, in His Word, and in our service to Him. Commitment is the opposite of apathy. A true commitment to Jesus means to be dedicated, consecrated and living in total service to Him. When we lose our first love, the opposite happens.
2. Our hunger and desire for God diminishes
During the time when we experience our first love, we had great hunger and longing to study and learn His Word. We had great thirst for His presence and for prayer, but after a while, our emotions and desires begin to diminish.
3. We become insensitive to sin
We become numb to sin and begin to compromise principles. The things that used to make us feel bad no longer affect us. What we used to consider as bad, is now good and normal. When we were in our first love with Jesus, any improper attitude or action made us feel bad immediately, but now it does not faze us. We lose our fear of the Lord. Our conscience is calloused making it impossible for us to renounce sin.
4. We become insensitive and lack compassion for the needs of others
We know that we are insensitive when we see an individual in need and we feel no compassion or motivation to supply that need or to help end his grief. Instead of compassion, we feel completely indifferent towards the situation and unmotivated to do anything about it. This is indicative of an insensitive heart.
5. We become insensitive to God's presence and the anointing
Picture the following: Every person in the room is crying; they are practically melting in God's presence. We, on the other hand, are unaffected by what is happening around us; our hearts are hardened, our minds are someplace else and the only thing we want is for this moment to end as soon a possible. This indicates that we are not being touched or broken by His presence; the Holy Spirit passes by our side and we remain unaware of His presence.
These sins indicate that we have lost our first love. They are warning us of our spiritual condition. I want to ask yourself the following question: "Lately, am I disinterested in the thins of God?" "Has my desire and longing for His presence diminished?" "Do I care if my actions please or offend God?" "Am I unsympathetic towards the pain and suffering of others?" "Has a prolonged period of time passed without me feeling or experiencing God's presence?" If the answers to these questions are affirmative, then this means that you have lost your first love. It is important to understand that no one loses their first love from one day to the next. Spiritual frigidity is a process that takes time. We must detect the symptoms quickly an before it is too late, so that we can fight for and persevere in prayer. This will prevent our greatest treasure, our first love with our God, to be lost.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
There is so much more to this book, only getting started.... it's because I actually have to type every single word
But no worries I want to type it all because it's really nice to see where I stand, to reflect on myself with my relationship with God. All is said in love
