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Listen in to today's devotional: https://bit.ly/3nLvvyv
1 Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the parent loves the child. 2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments. 3 For the love of God is this, that we obey his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome, 4 for whatever is born of God conquers the world. And this is the victory that conquers the world, our faith. 5 Who is it that conquers the world but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? 6 This is the one who came by water and blood, Jesus Christ, not with the water only but with the water and the blood. And the Spirit is the one that testifies, for the Spirit is the truth. (1 John 5:1-6 NRSV)
A tremendous Tuesday could be yours if you first put it in God's hands, ConCafe Family! And may that bring the blessings to you, dear Friend. A solid day is one grounded in prayer; so pray for one another; make time to pray for yourselves. Please add to your prayer list, the name of Ms. Leslie Slater Hill, who is the aunt of Ms. Wendy Allen; Leslie underwent a lung procedure and has been having difficulty coming off the ventilator; pray for her strength and recovery. Also, please continue to pray for the family of Ms. Catherine Winegeart, grandmother of Ms. Felicia Cantu, of Gonzales, TX, who last night went home to be with the Lord Jesus. May God comfort all who love and miss her.
What a title for a devotional; Conquer the World; more so because in light of the world conflicts we have in our history and even some that may yet come; this is radically different. Where global conflicts have usually been fueled by greed and ambition; this worldwide conquest is driven only by love. And it's the kind of love that goes beyond the hopeful songs we have heard in our lifetime; it goes to truly loving one another in order to let love rule in our lives; a faith filled with love in the heart of one who loves and is born of God will be able to do miraculous things for the honor and glory of God. I wish I could say that our history as a Church that follows and believes in the Lord Jesus Christ was a pure and blameless one, but it is not. It is a human organization that gives fuel to what I used to half-jokingly say as a district superintendent; "Jesus said where two or three are gathered, there might be trouble." Of course, Jesus did not say such a thing; His was pure: Where two or three are gathered in my name, there will I be also. And indeed, gathering in the name of Jesus is an invitation for His presence to be with us and to guide and lift us above the limited realm of our humanness.
A friend and I were discussing just this morning, the things that some third world countries see because of their openness to God and God's Holy Spirit to move among them. When people have faith and a great need, and the resources for that need are not as readily available as in first world countries, mighty and unexplainable things occur. My friend traveled to South America and was part of the Spirit's movements that did amazing things for people in need. Another friend witnessed first hand what God can do in countries such as India; and we wonder why we don't see as much here in the United States. In terms of medical needs, we have it all; an illness comes along and we either try to treat it at home or when it gets bad enough we go to our doctor or an urgent care center, or a hospital; in some countries, only God provides the urgent care in ways that we cannot understand. And in places where love is present, love can take the form of a conquering force, even in the midst of hate and oppression. Jesus' own kind and the ones whom we would have supposed would have welcomed news of a Messiah already present and working among them; but we find these provided the most resistance and the greatest force to kill Jesus just to silence Him. And even in the midst of these hateful killers, one of the Twelve remembered and shared the words of hope he found in Jesus' teachings. From the locked and closed doors of the Upper Room, to the streets of Jerusalem, then to the ends of the world, men and women followers of Christ Jesus gave their lives to show the power of God's love.
John tries to explain this teaching in the context of how it was received; Jesus shared commandments for us to follow and the disciple sees the blessings of love being possible through obedience to those commands. In Jesus we find the One who was willing to suffer the ultimate price of death to conquer the world in a saving way. Jesus' sole purpose was to bring the world back to God in love. No matter how far we may see ourselves, God's love is within reach and ready to be shared by us, for the good of the world, and the glory of God.
PRAYER: Loving God, empower me with love; the world-conquering love that we need to share so that others may come to know love. Conquering the world begins with our conquering hate, defeating doubt, and removing silly barriers, ages old obstacles that ignorance allowed to breed and be among us; in Christ we can truly win the world over with and for, love. In Christ Jesus we pray, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord! Love in ways that bring forth love for God and for others.
Receive my blessings of love and peace,
Pastor Eradio Valverde
