The Virtuous Life – Day 222 – 1 John 2:15-17- Do Not Love The World Or Anything In The World – Growing As Disciples
Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world–the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does–comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever. 1 John 2:15-17 (NIV)
I Love You
That is what I most want to say to you. What do you most want to say to me? I love you. How much do you love me? I love you with all my heart and mind and soul and strength. I love you with all that is within me. Having said that, I still have a powerful and passionate and persistent desire to ask you to fan the flames of my love for you. I want my love for you to completely overpower the love I once had for the things of this world. I want my love for you to guard and guide the entire course of my life. I want all my thoughts and words and actions to be rooted in my love for you. I want the priorities of my life to be formed by my love for you. I want my love for you to make me able to know you intimately. I want my love for you to help me to hear your voice as I walk through life with you. In other words, I don’t want to love you a little bit. In other words, I don’t to know you somewhat. In other words, I don’t want to half-heartedly live my life with and for you. I want to be fully devoted to you today, tomorrow, and forever. My life is at your disposal. I am at your service. I will follow you to where you lead me. I will do whatever you ask of me. This is how much I love you. This is how much more I want to love you. You have a very good prayer that you have been and will continue to pray, of that, I am sure.
Let me ask you a question. I’m listening. Where did this love for me, that is now in you come from? You loved me. I now love you. Your love for me rescued me from a life without you. Your love for me drew me to yourself. Your love for me, placed within me, a love for you. My love for you came from you as a gift. That is correct. That is right. That is true. Do you have any doubts about my hearing and answering this prayer of yours? Will I fan the flames of your love for me? Will you come to know and love me more and more as you continue to live your life with and for me? Will your love for me continue to guard and guide the entire course of your life? Will Your love for me make you able to accomplish my purposes and plans for your life? Yes, I believe that you will fan the flames of my love for you. Yes, I believe that you will help me to come to know and love you more and more as I live my life with and for you. Yes, I believe that my love for you will make me able to accomplish the purposes and plans you have for my life. That is very good. Keep moving forward with me. Keep on loving and following and serving me. Yes Lord, I will. That will be very good.
Lord, I have had misplaced priorities. I have pursued all that the world had to offer. I have often misspent my life on what will not last. Forgive me. Help my love for you to overpower any old desire to love things of this world. I am fully devoted to loving you. Amen
Key Question… How is your love for God helping you to reprioritize how you spend your life?
Living It Out… Let your love for God overpower your old desire to love the things of this world.
Seeing It Happen… Have faith that your love for God will overpower your old desires to love the things of this world.
Get Ready To Share… Share with another person or your small group how your love for God is overpowering your desires for worldly things.
Prayer To Bless Others… May your love for God replace the love you once had for the world.
For today’s complete 4 page Discipleship Devotional Devotional Study Guide click here
Please consider sharing these devotionals with others through the social media you use.
Individual users may save the Discipleship Devotional Study Guide to their desktop for private use. All the blanks in the study guides are fields that allow typed responses. To use the fields on the study guide you may need to open the guide with a free version of adobe reader.
By Jon Ulrich © All rights reserved Copying not permitted http://www.GrowingAsDisciples.com
