"But he did it first!"

Thoughtful Thursdays

I glance up at the pool to see my three year old son furiously splashing another youngster by leaning back and kicking his feet like a motor. I immediately stopped the activity, explaining that we don't splash others like that. It isn't kind. But my little guy felt completely justified.

"But he went like this to me!" And then he stuck out his tongue and spit.

And that's what we do. Someone spits at us, and we splash them back.

In yesterday's post, we talked about overcoming evil. We try to overcome evil with evil, but like Jay Adams says, you can't fight against evil with its own weapons. We need to use God's.

Blessings. Kindness. Love.

But what if you've been spit at and you don't feel very loving? All you want to do is splash back?

"Love is doing whatever good God says you must do for another, to please God, whether (at first) it pleases you or not. You must do so because He says so, and you don't wait until you feel like doing so. Love begins with obedience toward God in which one gives to another whatever the other needs. Love is not a gooey, sticky, sentimental thing; it is hard to love. Often, it hurts to love."

Jay Adams, How to Overcome Evil, page 35

The idea of overcoming means we don't just swim to the other side of the pool and ignore the person. We love them. It's an action. We overcome with good.

We can't do it alone. We need to be firmly tied to our Ultimate Lifeguard, the Savior of our Souls. Afterall, love comes from Him.

Looking for a new house?

Thoughtful Thursday

The housing market might be down, but here's a deal worth looking into.

I was talking to a friend tonight about what Jesus did for us. She just doesn't feel worthy of that kind of amazing love. She feels like she needs to be a better person first.

The conversation rolled around to visiting other people's houses unexpectedly when they're messy. She said, "Honestly, I don't care what their house looks like. I just want to see them."

And that's how it is with Jesus. He wants us. He doesn't want us running around hiding the dishes in the sink and throwing away the trash first. He's knocking, and He wants us to answer the door and let Him in.

We laughed together that then, He cleans the house for us, but in reality, He actually gives us His house! That's justification, my friends!

And then, as we grow to look like Him, we learn a thing or two about house cleaning. That's sanctification.

So if you're looking for a new house, look no further than to Jesus. He's offering us His perfect, sinless home by believing in Him. That's a deal in this market that is too good to pass up.

The 4-Minute Marriage Habit

I love Ann Voskamp's book, 1000 Gifts, which encourages us to be thankful in everything. Her writing style is refreshing and unconventional. If you're in the doldrums or even just looking for a cool drink that motivates, check out her book.

She recently blogged about:

The 4 Minute Marriage Habit: How to make 2012 the year you fall madly in love all over again 

 

It's worth checking out, especially this month as we're praying for our husbands. Puts a little traction on our prayers.

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