It's "In Other Words Tuesday" and Esthermay of The Heart of a Pastor's Wife is our host. She has chosen the following quote straight from the Bible for us to write about today.
When a person truly accepts Jesus as their personal Savior ...their lives will change.While Jesus walked on this earth with His disciples, He preached about His Kingdom that was not of this world. The Roman occupation probably weighed heavily on the people and they hoped Jesus' Kingdom would change everything and bring peace on earth.
But the peace that Jesus was speaking of was ...peace between God and man.
Jesus came to this earth to provide the only way to have peace with God. His death on the cross and how He overcame death by rising again to sit on the right hand of the Father and continually interceding for us ...changed everything.
Sinful man could be in a personal relationship with the one true God who created all things. When we fully realize what that means for us for eternity ... how can we remain the same?
I can tell you from personal experience that when I truly understood what Jesus did for me and how much He loved me, I was overwhelmed with love. And I couldn't keep silent.
My relationship with Jesus impacted:
- My work as a cardiac nurse
- My relationship with my husband
- The desires of my heart
- It changed what was important to me
- I had no taste for things I used to love
- Everything looked different like I was seeing with new glasses
And let me tell you that can create conflict.
When people who've known you one way suddenly see a 'new Debbie', an inevitable reaction occurs. I stopped getting invitations to parties and drinks after work. People I'd known forever suddenly felt uncomfortable if they slipped and said a curse word. When I attended a reunion, people commented that they heard I became very "religious". Many felt like I was judging them even though I wasn't.
However, I have to say that over the years much has changed for me personally. When I stopped preaching, leaving Scriptures or Christian books opened to a specific page and instead allowed the Lord to deal with loved ones, there was less conflict.
I still live my life as a believer and disciple of Jesus Christ but I've found that living a life of love speaks way more than words. There is a time for words; don't get me wrong. But I pray for the Holy Spirit to prompt me when to speak and ...when to be silent.
The more time I spend in a daily quiet time praying and reading the Bible, the more I reflect His love to others. The fruit of the Spirit becomes more evident and noticeable and I know and others know that's not Debbie.
It' the work of His Spirit within me and I can give Him the credit.
If we hide what's in our heart for fear of offending or simply keeping peace, are we truly His disciples? I think there will always be conflict between righteousness and unrighteousness. How can that not be?
I look forward to reading other participating bloggers take on this verse. Be sure to visit Esthermay of The Heart of a Pastor's Wife.
Blessings,
Powerful words my friend, love you.
ReplyDeleteI am not a blogger on this topic, but I, too, have found that actions speak louder than words. That is good because when it comes to oral communication, I am not good with the sword. The written word is my medium, so I choose my words carefully, depending upon where I am and what is going on. Without words, I would say that my entire workplace has become not only more spiritual but highly spiritually. Slowly, over time, people have become willing to use the words, but that was after the changes took place. The causes of the changes surely came from observations of behavior and the grace of God.
ReplyDeleteAll I need to say to this dear sister is PRAISE THE LORD! Thank you for sharing. I love you. I won't be online today. I will reach out tomorrow about the info you wrote and sent me. I SOOO appreciate you.
ReplyDeleteDebbie - this is what I am teaching the children - when to speak and when to listen. How to speak less and listen more. Using their actions and things they say to show others their love for one another and the world around them. To speak in truth and love. To use the bible as a sword of truth done in love - to help and encourage each others towards the goal of Christ Jesus.
ReplyDeleteWe spent an hour practicing this yesterday and will continue daily until it is natural reaction - instead of using their tongues for evil against each other - lying, tattle tailing, etc.
Love you deeply!
Jill
I like how you bring out your effectiveness increased as your words decreased. We motivate others with our love, not guilt.
ReplyDeleteDebbie it is so true that as we let our life speak we need to use fewer and fewer words. Bless you for sharing this powerful post!
ReplyDeleteAwesome Debbie - you said it just right...after accepting the good news that we can have a relationship with Him - how can we remain the same? Good stuff today, friend :)
ReplyDeleteAnd congrats for the Top Ten blog award!!!! I'm not surprised! You're blog is such a blessing! So cool :)
Have a great day, girl!
Love and Hugs,
Kate :)
Oh, Debbie you have spoken so from my heart. You know that I am a pretty quiet person (except when I am with people I feel comfortable with :))...at any rate, I am not a preaching person.
ReplyDeleteI think that living a life of love toward others will show others that there is something different in my life...and I pray that the Lord will give me the words to speak when someone asks.
Also - I do not like the word religious -- and I do not like it when people 'stamp' me that way. And I tell people that :)
Thank you so much for always sharing your heart and wisdom here.
Be blessed today and always...
Love & peace,
Iris
A cardiac nurse huh? I work with doctor's myself. I like your list of all the things impacted in your life because of Jesus, that was really great.
ReplyDelete"When I stopped preaching, leaving Scriptures or Christian books opened to a specific page and instead allowed the Lord to deal with loved ones, there was less conflict."
ReplyDeleteA great lesson...one I also had to learn! Letting go and letting God isn't always easy, but oh, the benefits! ;-)
Blessings,
Beth
thanks for sharing such a wonderful post I had not seen this meme before but I joined in today as well.
ReplyDeleteThis was really good Debbie, and I too have many thoughts on this verse. If I get a chance I might link up. But these kind of posts take me A LOT more time to write, haha...and I don't have a lot of time today. But let me just say this. I have found what you wrote to be sooo true. YEARS AND YEARS ago I too (in all my youthful zest) use to leave books open, send tapes, and just "preach" in general. But over the years I only had to look at those around who seemed to be so much more effective and used by God and saw that these were women who simply loved and served others for the Lord. And sometimes that was alot more difficult for me to do. When I discovered that loving others also came about from a closer relationship with Him, so that He might love through me, was the beginning of a much more effective ministry for me. Have a wonderful day. Hugs, Debbie
ReplyDeleteVery stron insights and thoughts. Warm regards and hugs my dear good friend Debbie. Philip
ReplyDeleteVery well said. How we live our lives as Christians will reflect Jesus better than any words ever could! Keep on living the good life!
ReplyDelete"living a life of love speaks way more than words" . . . That's so true! Yes, accepting Christ as our Savior does change the nature of how we relate to others, and conflict may follow. But as you said, when we choose to respond in love, in grace, and in truth, we honor Him and lift up those around us. Thanks for the words of wisdom you shared here today. As always, I enjoy "stopping by." :)
ReplyDeleteYou've put a real-life applicable example to the verse; and that's powerful.
ReplyDeleteIsn't it interesting how people do act "religious" -- as you put it -- when they are in the company of Christians?
You do pose one of the most important questions for all Bible-believing Christians in your last paragraph:
"If we hide what's in our heart for fear of offending or simply keeping peace, are we truly His disciples?
A full understanding of God's Word -- and a dedication to IT as the absolute authority in our lives -- can provide only one answer.
Beautiful take on the 'quote' today.
THANK YOU.
~esthermay
...and if we are showing love, and if we are living our lives as a follower of Christ, then when we do have the opportunity to speak, our audience just may be more willing to listen to what we have to say.
ReplyDeleteThoughtful post. Thank-you.
A former pastor used to say: "What you want others to know is more caught than taught." It was a great reminder that my life needs to be congruous; my walk & talk (or lack thereof) lining up.
ReplyDeleteWhen I think of Jesus' sword, I think of the many scriptures pertaining to the holy versus the vile; light versus dark; good versus the evil; etc. He wields a sharp, double-edged sword that separates it all.
Blessings,
Kathleen
You're absolutely right. People don't like it when you change. My poor husband married one women, then BOOM -- in steps the Holy Spirit and his wife was a different woman. It has taken many years for the balance to return. I made some of the same mistakes ... trying to force things when I should have just kept silent and prayed. Hind sight is 20/20.
ReplyDeleteLove,
b