Love each other...sounds simple, right?

Matthew 22: 37 Jesus replied: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."

Luke 6: 31 Do to others as you would have them do to you.

John 15: 10 If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commands and remain in his love. 11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. 12 My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.

These commands seem so simple at first glance. It's easy to love your neighbor as yourself when you like your neighbor, but do we still keep this command when it is someone we do not particularly care for? It seems like more and more people believe it is okay to say whatever they want about other people. You see it all over social media, along with the repercussions, some with incredibly tragic consequences. When you talk about another person, both good and bad, you need to remind yourself that you are talking about another one of God's creations. None of us are perfect, but God still loves each and every one of us.

I have often said if you learn nothing else from me remember that God loves you, not in our limited, romanticized, human view of love; rather, God loves you more than you can ever know or completely understand. He loves us absolutely and unconditionally. Because God loves you, you are to love others as well: the people you like, don't like, and everyone in between. This has especially been weighing on me as I meet and hear stories about children, youth, and even adults who believe they are unloved and unlovable. Moreover, the extent of the things people (Christians included) are open to saying and doing to each other to intentionally cause harm to another person is troubling to say the least. Bullying and mistreating others is viewed as entertaining instead of a serious problem. This cannot continue. If you truly understand that God loves you, and His joy resides within us, then you must love others in the same way. When you "love your neighbor as yourself" and "Love each other as I (Christ) have loved you," then you honor Jesus and His name is glorified.

Live right. Treat others with respect. Walk in the Joy of Jesus Christ. Above all else, know to your very core that God loves you, and nothing can ever change that. Be blessed, my friends!

You can't run a race backwards

1 Corinthians 9: 24 Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. 25 Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.

Philippians 3: 12 Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. 13 Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

The thing about a race is that you have to stay on course. It's really hard to win a race if you are incapable of following the track. Your eyes need to stay fixed on the goal ahead, if you are to reach the end. You cannot stray to the left or to the right and expect to get there. Moreover, it's really difficult to get anywhere if you are always looking backwards instead of forward. You cannot see the path before you, if you are constantly living in the past. Now don't get me wrong; looking back with fondness at beautiful memories is fine, but spending all of your time looking at your life with regret is completely different. Regret is a stronghold because regret places your focus on the wrong things. Regret prevents you from living your life in the way God intended. Living your life focused only on the would've, could've, should've in your life is like trying to run a race backwards; it just doesn't work; trust me, I've spent a lot of my life living backwards.

You cannot change the past, but you still have the future to look forward to. It's not too late to get back on track, and live your life in the way God intended. God calls us all to greater things than this, so we must persevere and press on. God calls you into a life of abundance. He calls you into His presence to walk in His joy and peace. The path ahead is glorious, even you are struggling in the present, but you cannot move forward if you are still living in the past. Let go of the past and accept the things you cannot change because God accepts you as you are, and in this way you will find the freedom that comes from living a life in Jesus Christ. I pray you all experience and live in the love, and joy, and freedom and peace of God. I pray for extraordinary favor for each and every one of you.