Worship

“God is Love” by Chris Renzema

Scripture

“Go ahead and give God thanks for all the glorious things he has done! Go ahead and worship him! Tell everyone about his wonders! Let’s sing his praises! Sing, and put all of his miracles to music! Shine and make your joyful boast in him, you lovers of God. Let’s be happy and keep rejoicing no matter what. Seek more of his strength! Seek more of him! Let’s always be seeking the light of his face. Don’t you ever forget his miracles and marvels. Hold to your heart every judgment he has decreed. For you are his servants, the true seed of Abraham, and you are the chosen ones, Jacob’s sons. For he is the Lord our God, and his wise authority can be seen in all he does. For though a thousand generations may pass away, he is still true to his word.” -Psalm 105:1-9, TPT

Love Without Limits

Oh the great, great love of God! In a world that is seemingly spinning out of control, I think we need to hear today that the radical and pursuing love of God never ceases. We are anchored in it. It’s a banner over our heads. It knows no heights or depths or limits. In fact the love of God is so great, He went to unfathomable lengths of unlimited sacrifice to make sure we understood it. He withheld nothing and gave everything. His love conquers all.

Creation’s Testament

I was walking in Alaska a couple of weeks ago as we were visiting my brother who lives there. I found myself completely overwhelmed to the core of just how much the Lord loves His creation. If my heart delights in the majesty and wonder of creation, how much more does God’s heart delight in all He has created! We watched the sea otters carry their babies on their stomachs as they glided through the water. Glaciers and volcanoes, moose, bear, and whales declare the majestic wonder of God. There are birds of many colors; eagles who soar overhead as cliff swallows make their nests in the side of the rock faces. I thought to myself, “If you care and delight in your creation like this, how much greater do you love and care and delight in us?” The Holy Spirit placed these sweet words in my heart:

If you could only grasp the depth of love I have for all I created!

It made me overwhelmed and tearful because I don’t think I really understand the depth of that truth.

“For God so loved the world that He gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” -John 3:16, emphasis added

He loves the world without hesitation, and He doesn’t want anyone to perish without knowing Him and encountering this radical and unexplainable love! So He goes out of His way to move Heaven and Earth to let you know.

Divine Interruptions

In January, Lewis, a student from England, was given a full ride to run at the college one of my daughters attended. He had never been to America, but this was his chance to pursue the very thing his heart loved. He sold nearly everything he owned just to purchase an airline ticket. He and Annie, my daughter, quickly became friends, and long story short, when the lockdown happened Lewis was not able to get back to England. So we opened our heart and home to have him live with us. Funny thing is, he would describe himself as an atheist and, well, the six of us are the furthest thing from that belief. I happened to be writing and fasting in preparation for the Passion Week devotionals, so this seemed a bit inconvenient to me, if I will be completely honest. I needed my home saturated in God’s presence, and now here comes someone entirely opposed to even the idea of God. Come to find out, he had not met one Christian his entire life in England. Not one. My husband looked at me the day before he came to live with us and said, “This is a divine interruption.” I knew he was right, and the “unreached” was coming to reside under my roof. Immediately the Lord gave me one directive: LOVE.

I began to pray, and many others have joined me in praying for Lewis to encounter the love of Jesus. The more I prayed, the more love I felt for Lewis, the more my heart was moved with compassion and longing for him to know Jesus. The very love of God plucked a 20-year-old out of the U.K., sent him to Texas in 2020 so he could come and taste and see the goodness of God! The ever-pursuing kindness, love, and passion of God for you and me leaves me speechless. Oh, that no one would miss Him. And evidently the Lord didn’t want Lewis to either. I am holding on to a word the Lord placed on my heart for Lewis:

He will be a warrior for the Kingdom of Heaven.

May it be so, Jesus!

Finding Our Anchor

When we don’t understand the complexity of chaos or the spiritual forces of darkness at work, there is one thing we must let down and anchor ourselves in, and that is the LOVE of God! “So go ahead and give God thanks for all the glorious things he has done! Go ahead and worship him! Tell everyone about his wonders! Let’s sing his praises (Psalm 105:1-2a)!” He’s worthy of our praise today! He’s worthy of our acknowledgment in the greatness of who He is. If we try and anchor in anything other than Jesus, we will drift! When we went fishing in Alaska, there was a part of the ocean where two currents were converging in opposite directions. It was the best place to catch salmon, so we let down our anchor and cast our lines. Had we not anchored our boat in that spot of current convergence, we would have drifted in the chaos of the waters.

Anchors down, sisters, so we can cast our lines and fish for people! The harvest field needs us anchored in His love, overflowing in His love, being conduits of this great and glorious love of God. A dying world is waiting for an encounter with your living and loving God who lives inside of you! More than 3 billion people have yet to hear His name. Get your anchors down, and let’s go fishing!

In closing, this is the Scripture I am praying takes hold in your life today. As you read these words, personalize it and pray it out loud! Will you ask Him to give you the same love He has for the world?

“So I kneel humbly in awe before the Father of our Lord Jesus, the Messiah, the perfect Father of every father and child in heaven and on the earth. And I pray that he would unveil within you the unlimited riches of his glory and favor until supernatural strength floods your innermost being with his divine might and explosive power.

“Then, by constantly using your faith, the life of Christ will be released deep inside you, and the resting place of his love will become the very source and root of your life. Then you will be empowered to discover what every holy one experiences—the great magnitude of the astonishing love of Christ in all its dimensions. How deeply intimate and far-reaching is his love! How enduring and inclusive it is! Endless love beyond measurement that transcends our understanding—this extravagant love pours into you until you are filled to overflowing with the fullness of God!

“Never doubt God’s mighty power to work in you and accomplish all this. He will achieve infinitely more than your greatest request, your most unbelievable dream, and exceed your wildest imagination! He will outdo them all, for his miraculous power constantly energizes you. Now we offer up to God all the glorious praise that rises from every church in every generation through Jesus Christ—and all that will yet be manifest through time and eternity. Amen!” -Ephesians 3:14-21, TPT