Friday, February 27, 2004
Read Chapters 11 and 12 of Judges.
Harlow, glad to be able to blog again, though there has been heavy workload I thank God for seeing me through all these difficulties. I pray that I would continue to be able to serve God in the way that God has placed me in. I will strive to seek and follow the "high road" with God's strength and not mine, for I am weak but He is strong. May all who follow me and under my sphere of influence serve God, that me and my household would serve God and God alone.
These 2 chapter talk about Jephthah as the ninth judge and his tragic vow. He vow that "If Thou wilt indeed give me the sons of Ammon into my hand, then it shall be that whatever comes out of the doors of my house to meet me when I return in peace from the sons of Ammon, it shall be the Lord's and I will offer it up as a burnt offering." Judges 11-30-31. However, it was his daughter who came to meet him and she was his one and only child.
It serves to remind us that we would watch what we say least we regret it. Never sad things in anger, neither vow on those that we can't take back. Let what James said be a reminder to us always. "This you know, my beloved brethen. But let everyone be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger, for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God. Therefore putting aside all filthiness and all that remains of wickness, in humility receive the word implanted, which is able to save your souls." James 1:19-21.
May God continue to watch over each and everyone of us, that though all our trials and tribulations that we would become better man. Let us look towards the cross and not turn to either the left nor the right.
These 2 chapter talk about Jephthah as the ninth judge and his tragic vow. He vow that "If Thou wilt indeed give me the sons of Ammon into my hand, then it shall be that whatever comes out of the doors of my house to meet me when I return in peace from the sons of Ammon, it shall be the Lord's and I will offer it up as a burnt offering." Judges 11-30-31. However, it was his daughter who came to meet him and she was his one and only child.
It serves to remind us that we would watch what we say least we regret it. Never sad things in anger, neither vow on those that we can't take back. Let what James said be a reminder to us always. "This you know, my beloved brethen. But let everyone be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger, for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God. Therefore putting aside all filthiness and all that remains of wickness, in humility receive the word implanted, which is able to save your souls." James 1:19-21.
May God continue to watch over each and everyone of us, that though all our trials and tribulations that we would become better man. Let us look towards the cross and not turn to either the left nor the right.
Monday, February 23, 2004
Another Interesting Article From The E-Mail! :)
Another interesting article from my sister again, guess it would be nice if you have the time to ponder upon it, hope it would be as encouraging to you as to me. Take good care of yourselves, people... Time is a real scarce commodity nowadays, just managed to rush finish my FYP, got a report to finish...
Created to Be Lovers
By Dr Charles Stanley
Have you ever wondered about your purpose in life? Have you ever wondered why God created you and what He has destined for you? Have you ever asked yourself, What is my reason for getting up in the morning?
At the core of the depression and despair that many people feel is a nagging question: Why am I here? The fact is, if you don’t know why you are here, then you don’t have a sense of purpose, direction, or meaning in your life. If you are without a basic mooring for your soul, spirit, and mind, then it is very easy to lose hope. If you don’t know why you are alive right now, then it is very difficult to see any reason for why you may continue to be alive in the future. The very nature of hope requires that you have some sense of meaning and purpose for your life.
The Word of God says that you have a purpose, one that is both noble and highly desirable in the mind and heart of virtually every person who has ever lived: You were created by God to love and be loved.
Yes, you.
This statement is certainly true for all of humankind, but it is also a truth that is meant for you to embrace personally. God loves you. He loves you unconditionally, without limit or qualification, and He loves you personally and individually.
Not only does He love you and desire to shower you with His love, but He longs to be loved by you.
Furthermore, He desires that you love and be loved by other human beings. God is generous—even extravagant—in His love. He delights when you express His brand of unconditional love to others and when you experience that kind of love in return.
If I could use only one word to describe God’s nature and His desire for you, it would be love.
The Unfathomable Depth of God’s Love
The very essence of God’s being—His personality, His nature—is love. The motivation for God’s sending Jesus into the world was love. The most famous verse in all the Bible tells us this: “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son” (John 3:16 nkjv).
The reason that Jesus came to this earth, lived a victorious life, and then died as the one definitive and lasting sacrifice to reunite God and human beings was love. God desires to have a relationship with you. He desires to reveal Himself to you, to shower His love and good gifts upon you, and to live with you forever.
The apostle John told us in one of his letters that the supreme attribute of God is love. John based that conclusion on his personal relationship with Jesus, having walked with Him for nearly three years of ministry before Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection. He wrote this after having lived in relationship with the Lord Jesus for several decades after Jesus went to be with the Father:
We have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son as Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him. (1 John 4:14–16 nkjv)
Note this one little phrase in the passage: “known and believed the love that God has for us.” John believed that God loved him.
John tended to refer to himself in his writings not by his name but as “the one whom Jesus loved.” That was especially true in the gospel of John. He certainly didn’t mean that Jesus loved him in an exclusive way. John did not say that with pride; rather, he had great humility, in essence conveying that he, of all people, knew the love of God. John was acknowledging that he was nobody without the love of Christ. It was the hallmark of his identity, even more than his own name. Christ’s love meant everything to him.
Remember that John was called one of the “Sons of Thunder” in the Gospels. He no doubt was a sometimes boisterous, always passionate, periodically rambunctious, perhaps even an impetuous man—a fisherman who was truly a man’s man in every sense. John’s world was a world that was ruled by Rome, determined to a great extent by the forces of nature and the catch of the day, and spiritually dictated by the gloom-and-doom Pharisees and Sadducees who emphasized obedience to the law of God but had little to say about the love of God. John was bold enough to grab hold of his destiny with both hands and not let go. He was brave enough to follow Jesus and to trust Him explicitly.
Have you ever thought about what it took to be a disciple in the time of Jesus? To give up everything and follow Him on a daily basis, not knowing where you were going to spend the night, what you were going to eat, or what forces of evil you might encounter? The apostles were men of courage.
They were also men who knew what it meant to be loved thoroughly. There is little reason to give up everything you have acquired or have known as your identity and to follow another person unless you are compelled by that person’s vision for the future and by the depth of that person’s love for you. Following a vision for the future is not enough; such a vision eventually will pale or may even be seen as manipulative or evil unless that vision for the future is rooted in a highly personal and deep love relationship. John and the other disciples knew that kind of love from Jesus. As John said, “We have known … the love that God has for us.”
John’s belief was based upon experience—not only while Jesus was alive, but his experience by faith in the years after Jesus’ return to heaven.
John believed he was a beloved one of Christ. He embraced that love wholeheartedly. He staked his life on the fact that God loved him.
The sad reality is that many people today have heard that God loves them, but they simply don’t believe it. They don’t know the full reality of God’s love in their lives. They haven’t experienced it, and therefore, they don’t know how to embrace it, nurture it, or grow in it.
Experiencing God’s Love in Your Life
A man once confessed to me, “I hear people talk about love, but I don’t know what love is. Oh, I can comprehend with my mind what they are saying. I can understand the words they use to describe how they feel. But I don’t know what love feels like.”
I knew exactly how that man felt. I once felt the same way. Most of my life I had an ache to feel loved.
I didn’t know a lot about love as a child. My father died of kidney disease when I was only nine months old. My mother immediately went to work to support us the best she could. For the first couple of years of my life, various women took care of me while my mother worked, but once I started school, I was pretty much on my own. At the age of five, I learned to comb my own hair, dress myself, cook my own breakfast, and get myself to school. My mother didn’t get back each day until well after I returned home from school.
Even during the brief periods through the years when we lived with my aunts and uncles, I suffered from loneliness. I knew my mother cared for me, but I didn’t feel an abiding sense of love. On more occasions than I can begin to count, the comforting arms, tender touches, and words of love that I needed as a child were missing. Nobody was present to provide them when I needed them.
When I was nine years old, my mother married a man who was full of anger, hostility, and bitterness. My stepfather was mean and abusive. I never heard him say a positive word about anything, much less a word of care or love. I don’t recall his ever giving me anything, including a compliment, a word of praise, or even an expression of concern.
During my twelfth year, I went to church one morning and went forward when Mrs. Wilson, who was preaching a revival at our church, gave the altar call. I fell on my knees, and I cried and prayed and asked the Lord to save me. I told Him that I believed in Jesus and His death and resurrection.
When the pastor asked me to come up and tell the people what the Lord had done for me, I remember standing behind that pulpit and saying, “I don’t know everything He’s done for me, but I know He’s saved me.” I had absolutely no doubt that I had been forgiven and that I was destined for eternal life.
Knowing that I was saved, however, did not mean that I had felt the love of God in my heart. My basic concept of God was one of judgment, not love. In my view, He was a remote, hard, and harsh God. Oh, I may have been able to quote a Bible verse about God’s love, and if someone had point-blank asked me, “Does God love you?” I would have said yes. But that was information I had learned in my mind; it wasn’t something that I felt in my heart.
Much of my concept of God was formed, of course, by my early childhood experiences. That is true for every person. My mother was a Christian, but she didn’t talk much about God around me. When we prayed, we both used King James English. For years, I thought that praying with “Thees” and “Thous” was the only way a person could be heard in heaven! Both in language and in daily living, God seemed very distant.
Because God wasn’t very near, He wasn’t very accessible or dependable. I couldn’t count on Him being present when I needed Him. I never thought about Him as being God the Father. Father—which in my case was stepfather—was a concept that was too earthly, too human, too familiar and, in many ways, too painful. God was, to me, remote and yet always watching and listening—ready to put me down and drive me out if I erred too badly.
My mother’s constant admonition to me as a boy was, “Don’t do anything that you wouldn’t want to be caught doing if Jesus were to come.” That really put a crimp in my style since just about everything that a normal boy would consider to be fun, my mother and the church considered to be a sin.
In those days, reading the funny paper was a sin. Wearing a tie clasp was a sin. Listening to any kind of music other than hymns was a sin. The God who saved me that Sunday morning was the same God who created the Ten Commandments, who kept points and checked your life’s scoreboard periodically, and who could and would send you to hell for your unrepented sins. I was saved, spared, but that had very little to do with love.
God Loves Us Unconditionally
From God’s standpoint, salvation has everything to do with love. Love was the motivation for His creating us, sustaining us, and sending His Son to die for our sins. But as a twelve-year-old, I didn’t know that.
And the equal fact is that I don’t need to feel God’s love to be saved. Salvation is based on answering one question and one question alone: Am I willing by faith to receive Jesus Christ as my personal Savior based on the fact that when Jesus died on Calvary, He paid my sin debt in full? If I say yes to that question, I receive Christ into my life. When I receive Him, I receive Him by faith. I believe in Him as my personal Savior. I accept a free gift offered to me with open arms. I don’t need to know anything about the motivation for God to extend that gift to me. I only need to receive it.
Repentance—which is our response to sin after we have accepted God’s forgiveness—is something that we do by the will. We choose to turn away from sin because something has happened in our hearts. We choose to walk in a way that is pleasing to God. Again, our motivation for repentance does not rely upon feelings of love. We can repent solely out of obedience and a desire to do what is right in God’s sight. We don’t need to feel a great outpouring of love for God, or feel His great outpouring of love for us, to convince us to obey His commandments and lead a godly life. Some do, of course. But many people don’t feel anything related to love in accepting Jesus as their Savior and making a decision to follow Him as their Lord.
On the one hand, of course, this is highly desirable. Our salvation is not dependent upon our emotions, which can be very capricious and unstable. Salvation is rooted in our acceptance of what Christ did, not in the way we feel.
On the other hand, when we accept Christ and don’t have a good concept of God’s love, we can continue to live a long time with a sense of fear, dread, and suspicion related to God. We can continue to strive to be worthy of our salvation and to do our utmost to “be good enough” for God’s rewards. I know that to be true; I did just that for decades.
I was an ambitious teenager, working hard to escape my impoverished childhood. When the opportunity arose for me to go to college, I threw myself into my studies. When I became a pastor, I threw myself 110 percent into doing everything I could for my congregation. I didn’t just try hard—I drove myself. I made serious lists of lofty goals and then threw myself into achieving them, even before my schedule called for their accomplishment and to a degree that was beyond the goals I had set! I had absolutely no tolerance for laziness or slothfulness, in myself or anybody else. I had a perfectionist’s attitude—do all you can do and then do a bit more.
My life was ruled by shoulds and oughts: “I should do this; I ought to do that.” I didn’t want God’s approval alone. I also wanted the approval of those who called me their pastor or colleague in ministry.
If a person has never known genuine unconditional love, then he knows the rules only for conditional love. And the foremost rule for conditional love is: “You must earn the right to be loved.” In my case, I felt I needed to earn the right to be loved by others, and I needed to earn the privilege of having been saved by an all-powerful, all-knowing, judgmental God. If I had any hope of receiving eternal rewards from God, I needed to earn them by my effort in ways that were measurable or definable.
The end result of that approach to life is one of constant striving and constant irritation or frustration.
No matter how much you push yourself, you never feel as if you are doing enough.
No matter how much you push others to be perfect, they never are.
The more you attempt to control, the less control you feel you have.
The more you are critical, the more you find to criticize.
The more you engage in fighting “for what is best,” the more you lose the relationships that hold the greatest potential for giving you the one thing you need—love.
I wanted God’s approval. I never even dreamed it might be possible to have God’s love.
That may sound strange to you coming from a pastor. The sad fact is that I used to be a preacher who said very little about God’s unconditional love. I didn’t have anything to say! I once asked my secretary to do a search of the files and pull for me any sermon I had ever preached on God’s love. She pulled one sermon—out of decades’ worth of hundreds of sermons—and when I read it, it wasn’t worth the paper it was typed on. I didn’t know anything at the heart level about God’s love. I therefore couldn’t preach anything from the heart about it. I knew about God’s love only at the head
level.
What happens to a person who knows about God’s love only at the mind or intellectual level? Such a person has a theory, but not an experience. A love void continues to exist, and over time, that void grows larger and becomes more frustrating. I believe that is especially true if a person is continuing to seek God and to desire all that God has for him or her.
Now, I didn’t know that I was missing the love of God in my life. All I knew was that something was missing in my Christian experience. I would preach about the freedom that Christ gives, go home, look up to heaven, and say, “But what about me? Why don’t I feel free?” I had an ache within me that I could not define or eliminate and, eventually, could not
escape.
My Personal Encounter with God’s Great Love
In intense inner pain and turmoil, I sought advice from four men whom I trusted explicitly. I called the men, who are people of the highest integrity, and I asked them to meet with me to hear me out with empathy and then to give me their wise counsel. I trusted God to help them to help me.
I met with the four men privately at a lodge in a wilderness area. I confessed to them that I was at the end of myself. I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t know where to go. I asked them if I could share with them my life and told them that after they had heard my story, I wanted them to give me their best advice. I assured them that I would do whatever they advised me to do. I had that much respect for them. I also conveyed to them how desperate I was and how extremely serious I was about receiving their help. They generously agreed to hear me out and to be God’s
instruments in my life.
I talked all afternoon and evening. I woke up several times in the middle of the night and wrote a total of seventeen pages in longhand—legal-sized pages—of things I wanted to be sure to tell them the next morning. I told them everything I remembered about my early life and all the highlights—both painful and positive—of my adult life and ministry. When I was finished—and believe me, I was completely spent at that point—I said, “Now, whatever you tell me to do, I’ll do it.”
They asked me two or three questions, and then one of the men who was sitting directly across the table from me said, “Charles, put your head on the table and close your eyes.” I did. He said to me very kindly, “Charles, I want you to envision your father picking you up in his arms and holding you.” After a few moments, he said, “What do you feel?”
I burst out crying. And I cried and I cried and I cried. I could not stop crying. Finally, when I stopped, he asked me again, “What do you feel?” I said, “I feel warm, loved, secure. I feel good.” And I started weeping again.
For the first time in my life, I felt emotionally that God loved me. I had known as a fact from His Word that God loved me. I had believed by faith that God loved me. I had accepted the fact that love is God’s nature. But until that day, not very many years ago, I had never emotionally felt God loving me.
God used that encounter with those four men, and that one simple question, to unlock the love void in my life and to begin to pour into it a flood of His divine love.
The full release of God’s love didn’t happen in a day. It was a process, little by little. But the more I explored the love of God, the more God began to reveal my true identity in Christ—that I belonged to Him as I had never belonged to anybody, that I was worth something to Him, and that He loved me beyond measure. I discovered when I got to the end of myself and all of my efforts at striving for perfection, a kind and gracious heavenly Father who had been loving me unconditionally all my life. Let me assure you, nothing is more liberating than that discovery.
The more I experienced God’s love, the more I began to understand the importance of saying to others, “God loves you just the way you are.” I came to be able to love others as they were and to be far less critical of their failed efforts or lack of perfection. God’s love for me became the source of a great love for others. The outpouring of God’s love into my life positively affected my ministry and my relationships with others. I had been invaded by love, and I couldn’t keep it to myself.
From that day in the mountains, I had a sense of inner closeness with God that I had never experienced before. I knew I could trust Him regardless of what happened to me, regardless of any mistakes I might make, regardless of how I might respond or react in my humanity. I had a strong feeling of assurance that I had always been loved, was loved now, and would always be loved with a vast love that was beyond my comprehension, but that I could experience nonetheless on a daily basis.
Once intimacy with God has been established, it grows. There is no end to God’s love, and there ultimately will be no end to our ability to experience it. We need never have love-starved hearts again. His desire is to overflow us with His love and, all the while, to enlarge our capacity to experience His love and give it to others.
I came to the place where I could say with the apostle John, “I have known the love of God. I believe the love of God.” I stand in that place today. The great desire of my heart is that you might know and believe that God loves you.
The Nature of God’s Great Love
Let me assure you of several things related to God’s love.
First, God’s love is the most important thing you can know about God.
In Luke 10:25–28 (nkjv) we read about an encounter that Jesus had with a certain religious expert. This lawyer (who knew the Law of Moses extremely well) asked Jesus, as if testing Him, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus asked him in return, “What is written in the law? What is your reading of it?” The man answered, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ and ‘your neighbor as yourself.’” The religious expert was quoting from two passages in the Law of Moses: Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19:18. Jesus replied, “You have answered rightly; do this and you will live.”
The most important decision you can ever make in your life is a decision about love—to receive God’s love, to love God, and to love others.
There are some 185 references to God’s love in the Bible, 140 of them in the New Testament. In Greek, the language in which the New Testament was written originally, the word that refers to God’s love is agape. This is sacrificial, divine love. God extends this type of love to each of us, and He desires for us to show it to others.
God’s love is absolute. It does not waver. It does not change over time. It cannot be influenced by circumstances or situations. It cannot be diminished.
Whatever we might say about God Himself, we must say about God’s love. His love is powerful. It penetrates and causes change in the human heart. It has purpose. It holds infinite meaning in its every expression.
God’s love is never subject to favoritism. He loves the sinner as much as He loves the saint. That may be a fact that we find hard to swallow in our human pride, or our desire to be “somebody special,” but the fact remains. God loves each of His children with the same quantity and quality of love. The difference between sinner and saint is that the person who has accepted God’s forgiveness and God’s love is in a position to receive all of the blessings that accompany His outpouring of love into her life. The person who has turned away from God has put himself out of a position to know the fullness of God’s blessings. It is as if a mighty river of God’s love is flowing toward him, but he has built for himself an island in the middle of the river so that none of the love touches his being.
Let me carry that illustration one degree further. A person who has alienated himself from God might plant bushes and trees on his island in the midst of God’s river. The plants might flourish, and he might enjoy the fruit they produce. The plants, of course, are drawing from the river through their roots. The end result is that the person experiences God-given things related to God’s love. This is certainly true for every person. The Bible tells us that the rain falls on the just and the unjust, the sun shines on the saint and the sinner. Every person experiences certain benefits and blessings that are the gifts of a loving God, regardless of whether he believes that God exists.
The person living on an island in the midst of God’s river of love may even dip periodically into that river to take a drink. Many people who don’t know God still have periodic feelings of love—perhaps as a feeling they have in their relationship with another person, a sensation that is triggered by deeply inspiring music or an awesome sunset, or an emotion that occurs when they are carried away by the beauty or mystery of something. But these experiences tend to be isolated in time and space. They are events, not an ever-present experience of love.
A person can live and die on his island—and know a certain degree of love—without ever setting foot into the river or allowing himself to be washed by its cleansing, freeing, invigorating, exhilarating currents.
God’s love is flowing toward each one of us as a deep, wide, beautiful, and never-ending river. It is up to us to jump in.
God’s love is also unconditional. It is not based upon what we do, what we have, or what we achieve. His love is given to us because of who we are, His creation. It is not grounded on any other premise or motivation.
You can’t earn unconditional love. You can’t merit it in any way. You can’t deserve it. God says you are worthy of His love solely because it is His desire to love you. There is nothing you can do to win more of God’s love. In fact, you can’t get God to love you any more than He already does.
Because God’s love is unconditional and not based upon your performance, accept it, receive it, and delight in it.
Second, the most important response you can make to God’s love is to love Him in return.
John said it simply and eloquently, “We love Him because He first loved us” (1 John 4:19 nkjv).
Jesus said that the first and foremost commandment was this: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind” (Matt. 22:37 nkjv). The only response acceptable to God’s great outpouring of love toward you is to love Him back.
You can choose not to do so. You can rebel against God’s love and turn your back on God’s outstretched arms. You can even deny the existence of God’s love. That doesn’t change God’s love toward you, but it does do something in you.
The person who stubbornly refuses to acknowledge and receive God’s love cuts herself off from great blessing. Not only that, but such a person quickly yields to anger, hatred, resentment, and bitterness. To harden one’s heart against God’s love is the supreme act of rebellion. The person who does this is hurting herself the most.
Loving God is a commandment in God’s Word because like following all the commandments, loving God brings good into our lives. It is not a commandment because God fears that we will not love Him unless He commands us to do so. Rather, it is a commandment because God alone is worthy to be loved. It is the only appropriate response to make toward One who loves as He loves. There is no other acceptable or honorable response we can make. It’s as if we are being told, “There’s only one right thing to do, so do it.”
In spite of what you may have been told in your life, in spite of what you may have come to believe, there is no reason not to love God. Some people don’t because they have bought into a lie from Satan about the nature of God. They don’t love God because they have been convinced by the enemy of their souls that to love and obey God is to be less of a person. They have bought into Satan’s lie that God causes bad things to happen to good people—as if God is enjoying some kind of joke on the human race. I have met countless people who are mad at God because of something they think God did to them unfairly and without cause.
Friend, that is never the case. God doesn’t hurt people because it gives Him pleasure. He doesn’t abuse His creation. Jesus said, “The thief [the devil] does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly” (John 10:10 nkjv).
The devil always plays to our pride. He constantly attempts to convince us that if we love God, we will have less personal freedom, less personal identity, and less pleasure. The end of that lie, however, is always tragic. Those who rebel against God’s love inevitably find their freedom is dashed. If they don’t wind up in a literal prison, they wind up in an emotional or psychological prison. They may wind up in a prison called addiction or in a prison of hatred and anger. Those who rebel against God’s love inevitably find that they lose their identity; they gain a reputation that totally denies their goodness and dignity. Those who rebel against God’s love also find that they end up with no pleasure in life. They become jaded, cynical, critical and, in the end, apathetic to virtually everything. They have the ultimate “been there, done that” attitude.
On the other hand, those who embrace God’s love and return it enjoy an inner freedom they never imagined. They find that they are more themselves and that they have hidden talents, abilities, and capacities they never knew. The joy of perpetual discovery is theirs. They know true delight in God’s creation.
All of the reasons not to love God are of human origin and, to a great extent, contrived. They are not rooted in any lasting reality. The only satisfying, enriching, meaningful, and joyous response to God’s love is to love Him in return!
“But why is loving God a commandment?” you may ask.
The purpose of God’s commandments ultimately is not to keep you from doing things that you find pleasurable or fun, but to guide you toward doing things that will bring you the greatest possible good in life.
In Deuteronomy 6, where you first find the great commandment to love God with the heart, soul, and strength, you also find this commandment: “You shall fear the Lord your God and serve Him” (v. 13 nkjv). Fear in this regard is not dreadful fright but an “awesome awe.” You are to recognize how mighty and glorious God is, that He is holy and almighty, and out of your overwhelming awe that such a God can and does love you personally, you are to obey Him as your supreme King.
And another commandment in the same chapter is this:
You shall not tempt the Lord your God. … You shall diligently keep the commandments of the Lord your God, His testimonies, and His statutes which He has commanded you. And you shall do what is right and good in the sight of the Lord, that it may be well with you, and that you may go in and possess the good land of which the Lord swore to your fathers, to cast out all your enemies from before you, as the Lord has spoken. (vv. 16–19 nkjv)
Note the specific blessings that come when you do what the Lord has commanded in His Word:
That it may be well with you. There is a personal blessing to be enjoyed—a peace of mind, a wholeness of being, a sense of purpose and meaning in life. “That it may be well with you” includes having hope!
Possess the good land. Someone who obeys God explicitly and diligently is in a position to receive material blessing from God.
Cast out all your enemies. God’s blessing extends to your relationships. You will not have to do battle with other people. Your relationships will be in good order; friendships, marriage, and parent-child relationships will be subject to God’s design. And when they are, you will enjoy a great exchange of love with other people.
What a marvelous promise of God to someone who loves Him! What more could you desire than to have things go well in life, to be blessed materially, and to have wonderful relationships with other people?
You shall teach the commandments of God to your children. This theme runs throughout Deuteronomy 6. God’s people are commanded to teach God’s statutes to their children and to bind them to their lives and to their homes. God’s people are to convey the understanding that “the Lord commanded us to observe all these statutes, to fear the Lord our God, for our good always” (Deut. 6:24 nkjv).
So many people I have met seem to believe that God’s commandments are intended to stifle human beings—to deny us pleasure, to keep us from experiencing the “good life.” The exact opposite is true. God’s commandments are for our good always. God made us, and He knows our limitations, our drives, our weaknesses. He also knows what will give us the greatest sense of fulfillment, satisfaction, meaning, purpose, and hope. He knows what will put us into the best possible position to give and receive love from other people. His commandments are His operating instructions so that we might experience all of the wonderful things that He desires to give us. His commandments have been given so that we might be part of a “holy people … a people for Himself, a special treasure” (Deut. 7:6 nkjv).
Furthermore, God is “the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments” (Deut. 7:9 nkjv). God’s covenant is something you can always count on holding firm.
The very essence of God’s covenant with His people is intended to be love. He loves us. He desires only that we love Him in return. If we love Him, we will obey Him—without question, without hesitation, without holding anything back. Our obedience will be spontaneous and wholehearted. And such obedience carries with it reward. The obedient are not swayed by temptations. They are not easy prey for those with evil intent. In sidestepping evil, they experience God’s goodness. This goodness is detailed in Deuteronomy 7:13–15 (nkjv):
He will love you and bless you and multiply you; He will also bless the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your land, your grain and your new wine and your oil, the increase of your cattle and the offspring of your flock, in the land of which He swore to your fathers to give you. You shall be blessed above all peoples. … And the Lord will take away from you all sickness, and will afflict you with none of the terrible diseases of Egypt which you have known.
Loving God is a commandment that carries with it an abundant blessing. Indeed, you can never outlove God. The more you love Him, the more you will be able to experience His love. He enlarges your capacity to know Him and receive from Him, but His outpouring of love is always at the overflow level in spite of how much you grow.
Third, God’s love is your ultimate reason to have hope.
If you know with certainty that God loves you and that He desires good for you, what is there to fear? What is there to dread? What is there to be depressed about?
I am not making light of fears, doubts, or depression. They are normal human responses. Hope, however, compels you not to remain in a state of fear, doubt, or depression. Hope encourages you to raise your eyes and look for the dawning of a new day. Hope calls you to anticipate God’s best.
Make this your number one reason for hope today:
I have hope because I know God loves me.
Created to Be Lovers
By Dr Charles Stanley
Have you ever wondered about your purpose in life? Have you ever wondered why God created you and what He has destined for you? Have you ever asked yourself, What is my reason for getting up in the morning?
At the core of the depression and despair that many people feel is a nagging question: Why am I here? The fact is, if you don’t know why you are here, then you don’t have a sense of purpose, direction, or meaning in your life. If you are without a basic mooring for your soul, spirit, and mind, then it is very easy to lose hope. If you don’t know why you are alive right now, then it is very difficult to see any reason for why you may continue to be alive in the future. The very nature of hope requires that you have some sense of meaning and purpose for your life.
The Word of God says that you have a purpose, one that is both noble and highly desirable in the mind and heart of virtually every person who has ever lived: You were created by God to love and be loved.
Yes, you.
This statement is certainly true for all of humankind, but it is also a truth that is meant for you to embrace personally. God loves you. He loves you unconditionally, without limit or qualification, and He loves you personally and individually.
Not only does He love you and desire to shower you with His love, but He longs to be loved by you.
Furthermore, He desires that you love and be loved by other human beings. God is generous—even extravagant—in His love. He delights when you express His brand of unconditional love to others and when you experience that kind of love in return.
If I could use only one word to describe God’s nature and His desire for you, it would be love.
The Unfathomable Depth of God’s Love
The very essence of God’s being—His personality, His nature—is love. The motivation for God’s sending Jesus into the world was love. The most famous verse in all the Bible tells us this: “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son” (John 3:16 nkjv).
The reason that Jesus came to this earth, lived a victorious life, and then died as the one definitive and lasting sacrifice to reunite God and human beings was love. God desires to have a relationship with you. He desires to reveal Himself to you, to shower His love and good gifts upon you, and to live with you forever.
The apostle John told us in one of his letters that the supreme attribute of God is love. John based that conclusion on his personal relationship with Jesus, having walked with Him for nearly three years of ministry before Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection. He wrote this after having lived in relationship with the Lord Jesus for several decades after Jesus went to be with the Father:
We have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son as Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him. (1 John 4:14–16 nkjv)
Note this one little phrase in the passage: “known and believed the love that God has for us.” John believed that God loved him.
John tended to refer to himself in his writings not by his name but as “the one whom Jesus loved.” That was especially true in the gospel of John. He certainly didn’t mean that Jesus loved him in an exclusive way. John did not say that with pride; rather, he had great humility, in essence conveying that he, of all people, knew the love of God. John was acknowledging that he was nobody without the love of Christ. It was the hallmark of his identity, even more than his own name. Christ’s love meant everything to him.
Remember that John was called one of the “Sons of Thunder” in the Gospels. He no doubt was a sometimes boisterous, always passionate, periodically rambunctious, perhaps even an impetuous man—a fisherman who was truly a man’s man in every sense. John’s world was a world that was ruled by Rome, determined to a great extent by the forces of nature and the catch of the day, and spiritually dictated by the gloom-and-doom Pharisees and Sadducees who emphasized obedience to the law of God but had little to say about the love of God. John was bold enough to grab hold of his destiny with both hands and not let go. He was brave enough to follow Jesus and to trust Him explicitly.
Have you ever thought about what it took to be a disciple in the time of Jesus? To give up everything and follow Him on a daily basis, not knowing where you were going to spend the night, what you were going to eat, or what forces of evil you might encounter? The apostles were men of courage.
They were also men who knew what it meant to be loved thoroughly. There is little reason to give up everything you have acquired or have known as your identity and to follow another person unless you are compelled by that person’s vision for the future and by the depth of that person’s love for you. Following a vision for the future is not enough; such a vision eventually will pale or may even be seen as manipulative or evil unless that vision for the future is rooted in a highly personal and deep love relationship. John and the other disciples knew that kind of love from Jesus. As John said, “We have known … the love that God has for us.”
John’s belief was based upon experience—not only while Jesus was alive, but his experience by faith in the years after Jesus’ return to heaven.
John believed he was a beloved one of Christ. He embraced that love wholeheartedly. He staked his life on the fact that God loved him.
The sad reality is that many people today have heard that God loves them, but they simply don’t believe it. They don’t know the full reality of God’s love in their lives. They haven’t experienced it, and therefore, they don’t know how to embrace it, nurture it, or grow in it.
Experiencing God’s Love in Your Life
A man once confessed to me, “I hear people talk about love, but I don’t know what love is. Oh, I can comprehend with my mind what they are saying. I can understand the words they use to describe how they feel. But I don’t know what love feels like.”
I knew exactly how that man felt. I once felt the same way. Most of my life I had an ache to feel loved.
I didn’t know a lot about love as a child. My father died of kidney disease when I was only nine months old. My mother immediately went to work to support us the best she could. For the first couple of years of my life, various women took care of me while my mother worked, but once I started school, I was pretty much on my own. At the age of five, I learned to comb my own hair, dress myself, cook my own breakfast, and get myself to school. My mother didn’t get back each day until well after I returned home from school.
Even during the brief periods through the years when we lived with my aunts and uncles, I suffered from loneliness. I knew my mother cared for me, but I didn’t feel an abiding sense of love. On more occasions than I can begin to count, the comforting arms, tender touches, and words of love that I needed as a child were missing. Nobody was present to provide them when I needed them.
When I was nine years old, my mother married a man who was full of anger, hostility, and bitterness. My stepfather was mean and abusive. I never heard him say a positive word about anything, much less a word of care or love. I don’t recall his ever giving me anything, including a compliment, a word of praise, or even an expression of concern.
During my twelfth year, I went to church one morning and went forward when Mrs. Wilson, who was preaching a revival at our church, gave the altar call. I fell on my knees, and I cried and prayed and asked the Lord to save me. I told Him that I believed in Jesus and His death and resurrection.
When the pastor asked me to come up and tell the people what the Lord had done for me, I remember standing behind that pulpit and saying, “I don’t know everything He’s done for me, but I know He’s saved me.” I had absolutely no doubt that I had been forgiven and that I was destined for eternal life.
Knowing that I was saved, however, did not mean that I had felt the love of God in my heart. My basic concept of God was one of judgment, not love. In my view, He was a remote, hard, and harsh God. Oh, I may have been able to quote a Bible verse about God’s love, and if someone had point-blank asked me, “Does God love you?” I would have said yes. But that was information I had learned in my mind; it wasn’t something that I felt in my heart.
Much of my concept of God was formed, of course, by my early childhood experiences. That is true for every person. My mother was a Christian, but she didn’t talk much about God around me. When we prayed, we both used King James English. For years, I thought that praying with “Thees” and “Thous” was the only way a person could be heard in heaven! Both in language and in daily living, God seemed very distant.
Because God wasn’t very near, He wasn’t very accessible or dependable. I couldn’t count on Him being present when I needed Him. I never thought about Him as being God the Father. Father—which in my case was stepfather—was a concept that was too earthly, too human, too familiar and, in many ways, too painful. God was, to me, remote and yet always watching and listening—ready to put me down and drive me out if I erred too badly.
My mother’s constant admonition to me as a boy was, “Don’t do anything that you wouldn’t want to be caught doing if Jesus were to come.” That really put a crimp in my style since just about everything that a normal boy would consider to be fun, my mother and the church considered to be a sin.
In those days, reading the funny paper was a sin. Wearing a tie clasp was a sin. Listening to any kind of music other than hymns was a sin. The God who saved me that Sunday morning was the same God who created the Ten Commandments, who kept points and checked your life’s scoreboard periodically, and who could and would send you to hell for your unrepented sins. I was saved, spared, but that had very little to do with love.
God Loves Us Unconditionally
From God’s standpoint, salvation has everything to do with love. Love was the motivation for His creating us, sustaining us, and sending His Son to die for our sins. But as a twelve-year-old, I didn’t know that.
And the equal fact is that I don’t need to feel God’s love to be saved. Salvation is based on answering one question and one question alone: Am I willing by faith to receive Jesus Christ as my personal Savior based on the fact that when Jesus died on Calvary, He paid my sin debt in full? If I say yes to that question, I receive Christ into my life. When I receive Him, I receive Him by faith. I believe in Him as my personal Savior. I accept a free gift offered to me with open arms. I don’t need to know anything about the motivation for God to extend that gift to me. I only need to receive it.
Repentance—which is our response to sin after we have accepted God’s forgiveness—is something that we do by the will. We choose to turn away from sin because something has happened in our hearts. We choose to walk in a way that is pleasing to God. Again, our motivation for repentance does not rely upon feelings of love. We can repent solely out of obedience and a desire to do what is right in God’s sight. We don’t need to feel a great outpouring of love for God, or feel His great outpouring of love for us, to convince us to obey His commandments and lead a godly life. Some do, of course. But many people don’t feel anything related to love in accepting Jesus as their Savior and making a decision to follow Him as their Lord.
On the one hand, of course, this is highly desirable. Our salvation is not dependent upon our emotions, which can be very capricious and unstable. Salvation is rooted in our acceptance of what Christ did, not in the way we feel.
On the other hand, when we accept Christ and don’t have a good concept of God’s love, we can continue to live a long time with a sense of fear, dread, and suspicion related to God. We can continue to strive to be worthy of our salvation and to do our utmost to “be good enough” for God’s rewards. I know that to be true; I did just that for decades.
I was an ambitious teenager, working hard to escape my impoverished childhood. When the opportunity arose for me to go to college, I threw myself into my studies. When I became a pastor, I threw myself 110 percent into doing everything I could for my congregation. I didn’t just try hard—I drove myself. I made serious lists of lofty goals and then threw myself into achieving them, even before my schedule called for their accomplishment and to a degree that was beyond the goals I had set! I had absolutely no tolerance for laziness or slothfulness, in myself or anybody else. I had a perfectionist’s attitude—do all you can do and then do a bit more.
My life was ruled by shoulds and oughts: “I should do this; I ought to do that.” I didn’t want God’s approval alone. I also wanted the approval of those who called me their pastor or colleague in ministry.
If a person has never known genuine unconditional love, then he knows the rules only for conditional love. And the foremost rule for conditional love is: “You must earn the right to be loved.” In my case, I felt I needed to earn the right to be loved by others, and I needed to earn the privilege of having been saved by an all-powerful, all-knowing, judgmental God. If I had any hope of receiving eternal rewards from God, I needed to earn them by my effort in ways that were measurable or definable.
The end result of that approach to life is one of constant striving and constant irritation or frustration.
No matter how much you push yourself, you never feel as if you are doing enough.
No matter how much you push others to be perfect, they never are.
The more you attempt to control, the less control you feel you have.
The more you are critical, the more you find to criticize.
The more you engage in fighting “for what is best,” the more you lose the relationships that hold the greatest potential for giving you the one thing you need—love.
I wanted God’s approval. I never even dreamed it might be possible to have God’s love.
That may sound strange to you coming from a pastor. The sad fact is that I used to be a preacher who said very little about God’s unconditional love. I didn’t have anything to say! I once asked my secretary to do a search of the files and pull for me any sermon I had ever preached on God’s love. She pulled one sermon—out of decades’ worth of hundreds of sermons—and when I read it, it wasn’t worth the paper it was typed on. I didn’t know anything at the heart level about God’s love. I therefore couldn’t preach anything from the heart about it. I knew about God’s love only at the head
level.
What happens to a person who knows about God’s love only at the mind or intellectual level? Such a person has a theory, but not an experience. A love void continues to exist, and over time, that void grows larger and becomes more frustrating. I believe that is especially true if a person is continuing to seek God and to desire all that God has for him or her.
Now, I didn’t know that I was missing the love of God in my life. All I knew was that something was missing in my Christian experience. I would preach about the freedom that Christ gives, go home, look up to heaven, and say, “But what about me? Why don’t I feel free?” I had an ache within me that I could not define or eliminate and, eventually, could not
escape.
My Personal Encounter with God’s Great Love
In intense inner pain and turmoil, I sought advice from four men whom I trusted explicitly. I called the men, who are people of the highest integrity, and I asked them to meet with me to hear me out with empathy and then to give me their wise counsel. I trusted God to help them to help me.
I met with the four men privately at a lodge in a wilderness area. I confessed to them that I was at the end of myself. I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t know where to go. I asked them if I could share with them my life and told them that after they had heard my story, I wanted them to give me their best advice. I assured them that I would do whatever they advised me to do. I had that much respect for them. I also conveyed to them how desperate I was and how extremely serious I was about receiving their help. They generously agreed to hear me out and to be God’s
instruments in my life.
I talked all afternoon and evening. I woke up several times in the middle of the night and wrote a total of seventeen pages in longhand—legal-sized pages—of things I wanted to be sure to tell them the next morning. I told them everything I remembered about my early life and all the highlights—both painful and positive—of my adult life and ministry. When I was finished—and believe me, I was completely spent at that point—I said, “Now, whatever you tell me to do, I’ll do it.”
They asked me two or three questions, and then one of the men who was sitting directly across the table from me said, “Charles, put your head on the table and close your eyes.” I did. He said to me very kindly, “Charles, I want you to envision your father picking you up in his arms and holding you.” After a few moments, he said, “What do you feel?”
I burst out crying. And I cried and I cried and I cried. I could not stop crying. Finally, when I stopped, he asked me again, “What do you feel?” I said, “I feel warm, loved, secure. I feel good.” And I started weeping again.
For the first time in my life, I felt emotionally that God loved me. I had known as a fact from His Word that God loved me. I had believed by faith that God loved me. I had accepted the fact that love is God’s nature. But until that day, not very many years ago, I had never emotionally felt God loving me.
God used that encounter with those four men, and that one simple question, to unlock the love void in my life and to begin to pour into it a flood of His divine love.
The full release of God’s love didn’t happen in a day. It was a process, little by little. But the more I explored the love of God, the more God began to reveal my true identity in Christ—that I belonged to Him as I had never belonged to anybody, that I was worth something to Him, and that He loved me beyond measure. I discovered when I got to the end of myself and all of my efforts at striving for perfection, a kind and gracious heavenly Father who had been loving me unconditionally all my life. Let me assure you, nothing is more liberating than that discovery.
The more I experienced God’s love, the more I began to understand the importance of saying to others, “God loves you just the way you are.” I came to be able to love others as they were and to be far less critical of their failed efforts or lack of perfection. God’s love for me became the source of a great love for others. The outpouring of God’s love into my life positively affected my ministry and my relationships with others. I had been invaded by love, and I couldn’t keep it to myself.
From that day in the mountains, I had a sense of inner closeness with God that I had never experienced before. I knew I could trust Him regardless of what happened to me, regardless of any mistakes I might make, regardless of how I might respond or react in my humanity. I had a strong feeling of assurance that I had always been loved, was loved now, and would always be loved with a vast love that was beyond my comprehension, but that I could experience nonetheless on a daily basis.
Once intimacy with God has been established, it grows. There is no end to God’s love, and there ultimately will be no end to our ability to experience it. We need never have love-starved hearts again. His desire is to overflow us with His love and, all the while, to enlarge our capacity to experience His love and give it to others.
I came to the place where I could say with the apostle John, “I have known the love of God. I believe the love of God.” I stand in that place today. The great desire of my heart is that you might know and believe that God loves you.
The Nature of God’s Great Love
Let me assure you of several things related to God’s love.
First, God’s love is the most important thing you can know about God.
In Luke 10:25–28 (nkjv) we read about an encounter that Jesus had with a certain religious expert. This lawyer (who knew the Law of Moses extremely well) asked Jesus, as if testing Him, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus asked him in return, “What is written in the law? What is your reading of it?” The man answered, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ and ‘your neighbor as yourself.’” The religious expert was quoting from two passages in the Law of Moses: Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19:18. Jesus replied, “You have answered rightly; do this and you will live.”
The most important decision you can ever make in your life is a decision about love—to receive God’s love, to love God, and to love others.
There are some 185 references to God’s love in the Bible, 140 of them in the New Testament. In Greek, the language in which the New Testament was written originally, the word that refers to God’s love is agape. This is sacrificial, divine love. God extends this type of love to each of us, and He desires for us to show it to others.
God’s love is absolute. It does not waver. It does not change over time. It cannot be influenced by circumstances or situations. It cannot be diminished.
Whatever we might say about God Himself, we must say about God’s love. His love is powerful. It penetrates and causes change in the human heart. It has purpose. It holds infinite meaning in its every expression.
God’s love is never subject to favoritism. He loves the sinner as much as He loves the saint. That may be a fact that we find hard to swallow in our human pride, or our desire to be “somebody special,” but the fact remains. God loves each of His children with the same quantity and quality of love. The difference between sinner and saint is that the person who has accepted God’s forgiveness and God’s love is in a position to receive all of the blessings that accompany His outpouring of love into her life. The person who has turned away from God has put himself out of a position to know the fullness of God’s blessings. It is as if a mighty river of God’s love is flowing toward him, but he has built for himself an island in the middle of the river so that none of the love touches his being.
Let me carry that illustration one degree further. A person who has alienated himself from God might plant bushes and trees on his island in the midst of God’s river. The plants might flourish, and he might enjoy the fruit they produce. The plants, of course, are drawing from the river through their roots. The end result is that the person experiences God-given things related to God’s love. This is certainly true for every person. The Bible tells us that the rain falls on the just and the unjust, the sun shines on the saint and the sinner. Every person experiences certain benefits and blessings that are the gifts of a loving God, regardless of whether he believes that God exists.
The person living on an island in the midst of God’s river of love may even dip periodically into that river to take a drink. Many people who don’t know God still have periodic feelings of love—perhaps as a feeling they have in their relationship with another person, a sensation that is triggered by deeply inspiring music or an awesome sunset, or an emotion that occurs when they are carried away by the beauty or mystery of something. But these experiences tend to be isolated in time and space. They are events, not an ever-present experience of love.
A person can live and die on his island—and know a certain degree of love—without ever setting foot into the river or allowing himself to be washed by its cleansing, freeing, invigorating, exhilarating currents.
God’s love is flowing toward each one of us as a deep, wide, beautiful, and never-ending river. It is up to us to jump in.
God’s love is also unconditional. It is not based upon what we do, what we have, or what we achieve. His love is given to us because of who we are, His creation. It is not grounded on any other premise or motivation.
You can’t earn unconditional love. You can’t merit it in any way. You can’t deserve it. God says you are worthy of His love solely because it is His desire to love you. There is nothing you can do to win more of God’s love. In fact, you can’t get God to love you any more than He already does.
Because God’s love is unconditional and not based upon your performance, accept it, receive it, and delight in it.
Second, the most important response you can make to God’s love is to love Him in return.
John said it simply and eloquently, “We love Him because He first loved us” (1 John 4:19 nkjv).
Jesus said that the first and foremost commandment was this: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind” (Matt. 22:37 nkjv). The only response acceptable to God’s great outpouring of love toward you is to love Him back.
You can choose not to do so. You can rebel against God’s love and turn your back on God’s outstretched arms. You can even deny the existence of God’s love. That doesn’t change God’s love toward you, but it does do something in you.
The person who stubbornly refuses to acknowledge and receive God’s love cuts herself off from great blessing. Not only that, but such a person quickly yields to anger, hatred, resentment, and bitterness. To harden one’s heart against God’s love is the supreme act of rebellion. The person who does this is hurting herself the most.
Loving God is a commandment in God’s Word because like following all the commandments, loving God brings good into our lives. It is not a commandment because God fears that we will not love Him unless He commands us to do so. Rather, it is a commandment because God alone is worthy to be loved. It is the only appropriate response to make toward One who loves as He loves. There is no other acceptable or honorable response we can make. It’s as if we are being told, “There’s only one right thing to do, so do it.”
In spite of what you may have been told in your life, in spite of what you may have come to believe, there is no reason not to love God. Some people don’t because they have bought into a lie from Satan about the nature of God. They don’t love God because they have been convinced by the enemy of their souls that to love and obey God is to be less of a person. They have bought into Satan’s lie that God causes bad things to happen to good people—as if God is enjoying some kind of joke on the human race. I have met countless people who are mad at God because of something they think God did to them unfairly and without cause.
Friend, that is never the case. God doesn’t hurt people because it gives Him pleasure. He doesn’t abuse His creation. Jesus said, “The thief [the devil] does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly” (John 10:10 nkjv).
The devil always plays to our pride. He constantly attempts to convince us that if we love God, we will have less personal freedom, less personal identity, and less pleasure. The end of that lie, however, is always tragic. Those who rebel against God’s love inevitably find their freedom is dashed. If they don’t wind up in a literal prison, they wind up in an emotional or psychological prison. They may wind up in a prison called addiction or in a prison of hatred and anger. Those who rebel against God’s love inevitably find that they lose their identity; they gain a reputation that totally denies their goodness and dignity. Those who rebel against God’s love also find that they end up with no pleasure in life. They become jaded, cynical, critical and, in the end, apathetic to virtually everything. They have the ultimate “been there, done that” attitude.
On the other hand, those who embrace God’s love and return it enjoy an inner freedom they never imagined. They find that they are more themselves and that they have hidden talents, abilities, and capacities they never knew. The joy of perpetual discovery is theirs. They know true delight in God’s creation.
All of the reasons not to love God are of human origin and, to a great extent, contrived. They are not rooted in any lasting reality. The only satisfying, enriching, meaningful, and joyous response to God’s love is to love Him in return!
“But why is loving God a commandment?” you may ask.
The purpose of God’s commandments ultimately is not to keep you from doing things that you find pleasurable or fun, but to guide you toward doing things that will bring you the greatest possible good in life.
In Deuteronomy 6, where you first find the great commandment to love God with the heart, soul, and strength, you also find this commandment: “You shall fear the Lord your God and serve Him” (v. 13 nkjv). Fear in this regard is not dreadful fright but an “awesome awe.” You are to recognize how mighty and glorious God is, that He is holy and almighty, and out of your overwhelming awe that such a God can and does love you personally, you are to obey Him as your supreme King.
And another commandment in the same chapter is this:
You shall not tempt the Lord your God. … You shall diligently keep the commandments of the Lord your God, His testimonies, and His statutes which He has commanded you. And you shall do what is right and good in the sight of the Lord, that it may be well with you, and that you may go in and possess the good land of which the Lord swore to your fathers, to cast out all your enemies from before you, as the Lord has spoken. (vv. 16–19 nkjv)
Note the specific blessings that come when you do what the Lord has commanded in His Word:
That it may be well with you. There is a personal blessing to be enjoyed—a peace of mind, a wholeness of being, a sense of purpose and meaning in life. “That it may be well with you” includes having hope!
Possess the good land. Someone who obeys God explicitly and diligently is in a position to receive material blessing from God.
Cast out all your enemies. God’s blessing extends to your relationships. You will not have to do battle with other people. Your relationships will be in good order; friendships, marriage, and parent-child relationships will be subject to God’s design. And when they are, you will enjoy a great exchange of love with other people.
What a marvelous promise of God to someone who loves Him! What more could you desire than to have things go well in life, to be blessed materially, and to have wonderful relationships with other people?
You shall teach the commandments of God to your children. This theme runs throughout Deuteronomy 6. God’s people are commanded to teach God’s statutes to their children and to bind them to their lives and to their homes. God’s people are to convey the understanding that “the Lord commanded us to observe all these statutes, to fear the Lord our God, for our good always” (Deut. 6:24 nkjv).
So many people I have met seem to believe that God’s commandments are intended to stifle human beings—to deny us pleasure, to keep us from experiencing the “good life.” The exact opposite is true. God’s commandments are for our good always. God made us, and He knows our limitations, our drives, our weaknesses. He also knows what will give us the greatest sense of fulfillment, satisfaction, meaning, purpose, and hope. He knows what will put us into the best possible position to give and receive love from other people. His commandments are His operating instructions so that we might experience all of the wonderful things that He desires to give us. His commandments have been given so that we might be part of a “holy people … a people for Himself, a special treasure” (Deut. 7:6 nkjv).
Furthermore, God is “the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments” (Deut. 7:9 nkjv). God’s covenant is something you can always count on holding firm.
The very essence of God’s covenant with His people is intended to be love. He loves us. He desires only that we love Him in return. If we love Him, we will obey Him—without question, without hesitation, without holding anything back. Our obedience will be spontaneous and wholehearted. And such obedience carries with it reward. The obedient are not swayed by temptations. They are not easy prey for those with evil intent. In sidestepping evil, they experience God’s goodness. This goodness is detailed in Deuteronomy 7:13–15 (nkjv):
He will love you and bless you and multiply you; He will also bless the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your land, your grain and your new wine and your oil, the increase of your cattle and the offspring of your flock, in the land of which He swore to your fathers to give you. You shall be blessed above all peoples. … And the Lord will take away from you all sickness, and will afflict you with none of the terrible diseases of Egypt which you have known.
Loving God is a commandment that carries with it an abundant blessing. Indeed, you can never outlove God. The more you love Him, the more you will be able to experience His love. He enlarges your capacity to know Him and receive from Him, but His outpouring of love is always at the overflow level in spite of how much you grow.
Third, God’s love is your ultimate reason to have hope.
If you know with certainty that God loves you and that He desires good for you, what is there to fear? What is there to dread? What is there to be depressed about?
I am not making light of fears, doubts, or depression. They are normal human responses. Hope, however, compels you not to remain in a state of fear, doubt, or depression. Hope encourages you to raise your eyes and look for the dawning of a new day. Hope calls you to anticipate God’s best.
Make this your number one reason for hope today:
I have hope because I know God loves me.
Sunday, February 22, 2004
Carrying on with Judges 10.
Well, people I am back blogging again. Now onto Chapter 10 of Judges. Thanks for all the support shown to this site thus far! Really appreciate you people for being there to keep this blog lively!
I am added the comments system again, let me know if it is down again. Hopefully, it will be able to do okay, as I am pretty tied down with work, so would not be able to do much re-designing of the site until the end of May, maybe even until June. So Snoopy & friends will be around until then. That is if I can come out or find some nicer designs.
Another update, for those who do not know, my phone is back online! Got a Nokia 3100, so the number is the same as the previous one, so you people got to call me to give me your contacts as I have lost all my old contacts!
Well, into the Word of God! In chapter 10, we read that 2 more judges rose to leadership, the first being Tola, a man of Issachar and the second being Jair the Gileadite. However, after the death of Jair, the Israelites fell again into sin and were oppressed by the Philistines and Ammonites...
Is it not often the case, where we often wander away from God, serving other "gods" in our life. These "gods" could be anything. They may not be another religion, but they could well be self, money, career, work, studies. etc. We do well to look into our lives and re-examine our lives and put Jesus Chirst our Lord first in our lives. With God in our lives, who can be against us? But without God all is lost... So let us that a short moment to confess any sins that we may have committed and re-commit our lives to God.
Do take good care of yourselves and continue to grow in Him always... Yosh!
I am added the comments system again, let me know if it is down again. Hopefully, it will be able to do okay, as I am pretty tied down with work, so would not be able to do much re-designing of the site until the end of May, maybe even until June. So Snoopy & friends will be around until then. That is if I can come out or find some nicer designs.
Another update, for those who do not know, my phone is back online! Got a Nokia 3100, so the number is the same as the previous one, so you people got to call me to give me your contacts as I have lost all my old contacts!
Well, into the Word of God! In chapter 10, we read that 2 more judges rose to leadership, the first being Tola, a man of Issachar and the second being Jair the Gileadite. However, after the death of Jair, the Israelites fell again into sin and were oppressed by the Philistines and Ammonites...
Is it not often the case, where we often wander away from God, serving other "gods" in our life. These "gods" could be anything. They may not be another religion, but they could well be self, money, career, work, studies. etc. We do well to look into our lives and re-examine our lives and put Jesus Chirst our Lord first in our lives. With God in our lives, who can be against us? But without God all is lost... So let us that a short moment to confess any sins that we may have committed and re-commit our lives to God.
Do take good care of yourselves and continue to grow in Him always... Yosh!
Monday, February 16, 2004
Updated the Site with New Layout!
Greetings to all, just changed my layout, hope everyone would find this place nicer. Do leave behind comments under the articles or at the tagboard, whether you are visiting here for the first time or you are a regular! Welcome! :"P
Thursday, February 12, 2004
Love Story!
Harlow, as Valentine's Day is round the corner, here is another love story... Enjoy! :)
Love Story
I had three friends Eric, Cathlyn, Carol.
Eric was chased by all the girls in our high school.
Cathlyn was one of those popular girls. Cheerleader, sexy, and stylish.
Carol was just one of those plain and average girls.
Cathlyn and Carol were both totally crazy and wacko over Eric.
Cathlyn didn't have to do anything to attract Eric. For she was already attractive enough.
Carol on the other hand, showered Eric which love and care.
Carol wasn't ugly at all. In fact, she looked sweet and pleasant. But she wasn't a cheerleader, she didn't wear spaghetti-straps or tubes.
So like everyone expected, Eric chose Cathlyn.
For Carol was just one ordinary and plain girl.
While Cathlyn was labeled as the cool and attractive type.
Eric always insulted Carol. Telling her what a 'Plain Jane' she was and how dumb she looked, which obviously made Carol feel so hurt and useless.
That's life.
Carol never gave up though.
She wanted to prove something to Eric. She wanted to prove that looks aren't everything. She studied hard, really hard. She became the top girl, and all the guys who once ignored her, chased her.
But she never forgot Eric.
Everyday, she put a red rose in Eric's locker.
Always with the same words, 'I care for you, and I always will.'
Because she knew that Eric was facing a hard time. Eric began to realise how dumb he had been. His beloved girlfriend, Cathlyn was flirting with other guys.
He regretted for choosing the wrong girl.
Cathlyn broke up with Eric later, for she had found a wealthier guy.
Eric felt so cheated, stupid and dumb. He went to look for Carol.
He knelt on his knees, and said, "Carol, please forgive me. Do you want to be my girlfriend?"
Carol rejected him, much to everyone's surprise.
She only uttered these words, "You've suffered a great loss, so I don't want you to face another one"
Eric felt disappointed.
He didn't understand a word that she said to him.
But they became good friends.
Did everything together.
Eric began to change into someone better.
Because Carol showered him with the love he never experienced before.
His ex-girlfriends had never treated him that way.
They just accepted him for his looks.
But Carol accepted him for himself.
She changed him.
Carol continued putting a red rose into his locker everyday.
With the same words.
She never forgot.
One day, Carol didn't turn up in school.
She didn't come for a week.
At first, Eric thought that she was on a vacation with her family.
Because she told him that she would be going Hawaii with them.
But one day, he received a call from the General Hospital saying that Carol was about to die. She had been suffering from cancer. But Carol forbade them from telling him because she didn't want Eric to worry about her.
But now that she was about to die, she wanted to see Eric for the last time.
Eric rushed to the hospital.
When he saw how weak Carol was.
Tears began rushing down his cheeks.
He whispered, "Why didn't you tell me earlier? Why did you hide this from me?"
She looked at him and smiled weakly at him, "When I said that I didn't want you to suffer from facing another loss, I meant this. I didn't want to tell you because I didn't want you to worry. I wanted to spend my last days with you cheerfully."
Eric looked at her, "You can't leave me!" he said. "What will I be without you?"
"You'll be who you are now. I will always be there by your side. Never forget that. Cherish those times. Live life happily. And one more thing."
"Yes?"
"I love you"
And she died
Eric screamed; He still couldn't accept Carol's death. He had only spent a month with Carol. A month, But Carol changed his life in a way that no one could ever explain. He regretted.
But he knew that Carol would always be keeping an eye on him from Heaven.
Sometimes, We just don't appreciate those people who really care for us. Until they leave us. Until we lose them. Then we regret.
Outer beauty doesn't matter; it's the inner one that counts.
It's better to tell someone how much you love them, rather than to not tell them and lose them without telling them
You'll regret.
Love is
When we fight till the very last minute, just to show and tell someone how much we love them...
Love Story
I had three friends Eric, Cathlyn, Carol.
Eric was chased by all the girls in our high school.
Cathlyn was one of those popular girls. Cheerleader, sexy, and stylish.
Carol was just one of those plain and average girls.
Cathlyn and Carol were both totally crazy and wacko over Eric.
Cathlyn didn't have to do anything to attract Eric. For she was already attractive enough.
Carol on the other hand, showered Eric which love and care.
Carol wasn't ugly at all. In fact, she looked sweet and pleasant. But she wasn't a cheerleader, she didn't wear spaghetti-straps or tubes.
So like everyone expected, Eric chose Cathlyn.
For Carol was just one ordinary and plain girl.
While Cathlyn was labeled as the cool and attractive type.
Eric always insulted Carol. Telling her what a 'Plain Jane' she was and how dumb she looked, which obviously made Carol feel so hurt and useless.
That's life.
Carol never gave up though.
She wanted to prove something to Eric. She wanted to prove that looks aren't everything. She studied hard, really hard. She became the top girl, and all the guys who once ignored her, chased her.
But she never forgot Eric.
Everyday, she put a red rose in Eric's locker.
Always with the same words, 'I care for you, and I always will.'
Because she knew that Eric was facing a hard time. Eric began to realise how dumb he had been. His beloved girlfriend, Cathlyn was flirting with other guys.
He regretted for choosing the wrong girl.
Cathlyn broke up with Eric later, for she had found a wealthier guy.
Eric felt so cheated, stupid and dumb. He went to look for Carol.
He knelt on his knees, and said, "Carol, please forgive me. Do you want to be my girlfriend?"
Carol rejected him, much to everyone's surprise.
She only uttered these words, "You've suffered a great loss, so I don't want you to face another one"
Eric felt disappointed.
He didn't understand a word that she said to him.
But they became good friends.
Did everything together.
Eric began to change into someone better.
Because Carol showered him with the love he never experienced before.
His ex-girlfriends had never treated him that way.
They just accepted him for his looks.
But Carol accepted him for himself.
She changed him.
Carol continued putting a red rose into his locker everyday.
With the same words.
She never forgot.
One day, Carol didn't turn up in school.
She didn't come for a week.
At first, Eric thought that she was on a vacation with her family.
Because she told him that she would be going Hawaii with them.
But one day, he received a call from the General Hospital saying that Carol was about to die. She had been suffering from cancer. But Carol forbade them from telling him because she didn't want Eric to worry about her.
But now that she was about to die, she wanted to see Eric for the last time.
Eric rushed to the hospital.
When he saw how weak Carol was.
Tears began rushing down his cheeks.
He whispered, "Why didn't you tell me earlier? Why did you hide this from me?"
She looked at him and smiled weakly at him, "When I said that I didn't want you to suffer from facing another loss, I meant this. I didn't want to tell you because I didn't want you to worry. I wanted to spend my last days with you cheerfully."
Eric looked at her, "You can't leave me!" he said. "What will I be without you?"
"You'll be who you are now. I will always be there by your side. Never forget that. Cherish those times. Live life happily. And one more thing."
"Yes?"
"I love you"
And she died
Eric screamed; He still couldn't accept Carol's death. He had only spent a month with Carol. A month, But Carol changed his life in a way that no one could ever explain. He regretted.
But he knew that Carol would always be keeping an eye on him from Heaven.
Sometimes, We just don't appreciate those people who really care for us. Until they leave us. Until we lose them. Then we regret.
Outer beauty doesn't matter; it's the inner one that counts.
It's better to tell someone how much you love them, rather than to not tell them and lose them without telling them
You'll regret.
Love is
When we fight till the very last minute, just to show and tell someone how much we love them...
Tuesday, February 10, 2004
Facts about life! :)
Harlow, well I am in school now, taking a break, thought I just check my e-mail and I received this from my Godsister, hope you people would enjoy it! This may be an old post that have been circulated via the e-mail many times, however, the truths are still there! Yosh! :)
Paradox of Our Time
The paradox of our time in history is that we have taller buildings but shorter tempers, wider freeways, but narrower viewpoints.
We spend more, but have less, we buy more, but enjoy less.
We have bigger houses and smaller families, more conveniences, but less time.
We have more degrees but less sense, more knowledge, but less judgment, more experts, yet more problems, more medicine, but less wellness.
We drink too much, smoke too much, spend too recklessly, laugh too little, drive too fast, get too angry, stay up too late, get up too tired, read too little, watch TV too much, and pray too seldom.
We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values. We talk too much, love too seldom, and hate too often.
We've learned how to make a living, but not a life. We've added years to life not life to years.
We've been all the way to the moon and back, but have trouble crossing the street to meet a new neighbor.
We conquered outer space but not inner space.
We've done larger things, but not better things.
We've cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul.
We've conquered the atom, but not our prejudice.
We write more, but learn less.
We plan more, but accomplish less.
We've learned to rush, but not to wait.
We build more computers to hold more information, to produce more copies than ever, but we communicate less and less.
These are the times of fast foods and slow digestion, big men and small character, steep profits and shallow relationships.
These are the days of two incomes but more divorce, fancier houses, but broken homes.
These are days of quick trips, disposable diapers, throwaway morality, one night stands, overweight bodies, and pills that do everything from cheer, to quiet, to kill.
It is a time when there is much in the showroom window and nothing in the stockroom, a time when technology can bring this letter to you, and a time when you can choose either to share this insight, or to just hit delete.
Remember, spend some time with your loved ones, because they are not going to be around forever.
Remember, say a kind word to someone who looks up to you in awe, because that little person soon will grow up
and leave your side.
Remember, to give a warm hug to the one next to you, because that is the only treasure you can give with your heart and it doesn't cost a cent.
Remember, to say, "I love you" to your partner and your loved ones, but most of all mean it. A kiss and an embrace will mend hurt when it comes from deep inside of you.
Remember to hold hands and cherish the moment for someday that person will not be there again. Give time to love, give time to speak, and give time to share the precious thoughts in your mind.
HOW TO STAY YOUNG
1. Throw out nonessential numbers. This includes age, weight and height. Let the doctor worry about them. That is why you pay him/her.
2. Keep only cheerful friends. The grouches pull you down.
3. Keep learning. Learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever. Never let the brain idle. " An idle mind is the devil's workshop."
4. Enjoy the simple things.
5. Laugh often, long and loud. Laugh until you gasp for breath.
6. The tears happen. Endure, grieve, and move on. The only person who is with us our entire life, is ourselves. Be ALIVE while you are alive.
7. Surround yourself with what you love, whether it's family, pets, keepsakes, music, plants, hobbies, whatever. Your home is your refuge.
8. Cherish your health: If it is good, preserve it. If it is unstable, improve it. If it is beyond what you can improve, get help.
9. Don't take guilt trips. Take a trip to the mall, to the next county, to a foreign country, but NOT to where the guilt is.
10. Tell the people you love that you love them, at every opportunity.
AND ALWAYS REMEMBER:
Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.
Paradox of Our Time
The paradox of our time in history is that we have taller buildings but shorter tempers, wider freeways, but narrower viewpoints.
We spend more, but have less, we buy more, but enjoy less.
We have bigger houses and smaller families, more conveniences, but less time.
We have more degrees but less sense, more knowledge, but less judgment, more experts, yet more problems, more medicine, but less wellness.
We drink too much, smoke too much, spend too recklessly, laugh too little, drive too fast, get too angry, stay up too late, get up too tired, read too little, watch TV too much, and pray too seldom.
We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values. We talk too much, love too seldom, and hate too often.
We've learned how to make a living, but not a life. We've added years to life not life to years.
We've been all the way to the moon and back, but have trouble crossing the street to meet a new neighbor.
We conquered outer space but not inner space.
We've done larger things, but not better things.
We've cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul.
We've conquered the atom, but not our prejudice.
We write more, but learn less.
We plan more, but accomplish less.
We've learned to rush, but not to wait.
We build more computers to hold more information, to produce more copies than ever, but we communicate less and less.
These are the times of fast foods and slow digestion, big men and small character, steep profits and shallow relationships.
These are the days of two incomes but more divorce, fancier houses, but broken homes.
These are days of quick trips, disposable diapers, throwaway morality, one night stands, overweight bodies, and pills that do everything from cheer, to quiet, to kill.
It is a time when there is much in the showroom window and nothing in the stockroom, a time when technology can bring this letter to you, and a time when you can choose either to share this insight, or to just hit delete.
Remember, spend some time with your loved ones, because they are not going to be around forever.
Remember, say a kind word to someone who looks up to you in awe, because that little person soon will grow up
and leave your side.
Remember, to give a warm hug to the one next to you, because that is the only treasure you can give with your heart and it doesn't cost a cent.
Remember, to say, "I love you" to your partner and your loved ones, but most of all mean it. A kiss and an embrace will mend hurt when it comes from deep inside of you.
Remember to hold hands and cherish the moment for someday that person will not be there again. Give time to love, give time to speak, and give time to share the precious thoughts in your mind.
HOW TO STAY YOUNG
1. Throw out nonessential numbers. This includes age, weight and height. Let the doctor worry about them. That is why you pay him/her.
2. Keep only cheerful friends. The grouches pull you down.
3. Keep learning. Learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever. Never let the brain idle. " An idle mind is the devil's workshop."
4. Enjoy the simple things.
5. Laugh often, long and loud. Laugh until you gasp for breath.
6. The tears happen. Endure, grieve, and move on. The only person who is with us our entire life, is ourselves. Be ALIVE while you are alive.
7. Surround yourself with what you love, whether it's family, pets, keepsakes, music, plants, hobbies, whatever. Your home is your refuge.
8. Cherish your health: If it is good, preserve it. If it is unstable, improve it. If it is beyond what you can improve, get help.
9. Don't take guilt trips. Take a trip to the mall, to the next county, to a foreign country, but NOT to where the guilt is.
10. Tell the people you love that you love them, at every opportunity.
AND ALWAYS REMEMBER:
Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.
Monday, February 09, 2004
Quiz?!?
Some funny test which I took that seems so weird... Here is the webpage: http://colorgenics.com//
The Sunset
Always searching for a fleeting image of a true experience, the Sunset personality is living in the world as it exists, but also in a perpetual quest to find the new, the exciting, the cusp of a changing day.
Emotionally volatile, this personality is known for sudden changes of opinion, of appreciation, and behavior. Following rules and established methods is difficult for this type of personality and the difficulties of higher education are usually quite daunting. Experience is the watchword for the Sunset. Knowledge is best gained through an intimate association with the matter at hand. Because of this, these personalities make excellent musicians or athletes.
The Sunset
Always searching for a fleeting image of a true experience, the Sunset personality is living in the world as it exists, but also in a perpetual quest to find the new, the exciting, the cusp of a changing day.
Emotionally volatile, this personality is known for sudden changes of opinion, of appreciation, and behavior. Following rules and established methods is difficult for this type of personality and the difficulties of higher education are usually quite daunting. Experience is the watchword for the Sunset. Knowledge is best gained through an intimate association with the matter at hand. Because of this, these personalities make excellent musicians or athletes.
Just Another 2 Interesting Articles for Valentine's Day! :"P
Here is an advance Happy Valentine's Day to all! May the friendship forged among all of us continue to grow and withstand the test of time! :)
I Love You in 100 Languages
English - I love you
Afrikaans - Ek het jou lief
Albanian - Te dua
Arabic - Ana behibak (to male)
Arabic - Ana behibek (to female)
Armenian - Yes kez sirumen
Bambara - M'bi fe
Bangla - Aamee tuma ke bhalo aashi
Belarusian - Ya tabe kahayu
Bisaya - Nahigugma ako kanimo
Bulgarian - Obicham te
Cambodian - Soro lahn nhee ah
Cantonese Chinese - Ngo oiy ney a
Catalan - T'estimo
Cheyenne - Ne mohotatse
Chichewa - Ndimakukonda
Corsican - Ti tengu caru (to male)
Creol - Mi aime jou
Croatian - Volim te
Czech - Miluji te
Danish - Jeg Elsker Dig
Dutch - Ik hou van jou
Esperanto - Mi amas vin
Estonian - Ma armastan sind
Ethiopian - Afgreki'
Faroese - Eg elski teg
Farsi - Doset daram
Filipino - Mahal kita
Finnish - Mina rakastan sinua
French - Je t'aime, Je t'adore
Frisian - Ik hâld fan dy
Gaelic - Ta gra agam ort
Georgian - Mikvarhar
German - Ich liebe dich
Greek - S'agapo
Gujarati - Hoo thunay prem karoo choo
Hiligaynon - Palangga ko ikaw
Hawaiian - Aloha wau ia oi
Hebrew - Ani ohev otah (to female)
Hebrew - Ani ohev et otha (to male)
Hiligaynon - Guina higugma ko ikaw
Hindi - Hum Tumhe Pyar Karte hae
Hmong - Kuv hlub koj
Hopi - Nu' umi unangwa'ta
Hungarian - Szeretlek
Icelandic - Eg elska tig
Ilonggo - Palangga ko ikaw
Indonesian - Saya cinta padamu
Inuit - Negligevapse
Irish - Taim i' ngra leat
Italian - Ti amo
Japanese - Aishiteru
Kannada - Naanu ninna preetisuttene
Kapampangan - Kaluguran daka
Kiswahili - Nakupenda
Konkani - Tu magel moga cho
Korean - Sarang Heyo
Latin - Te amo
Latvian - Es tevi miilu
Lebanese - Bahibak
Lithuanian - Tave myliu
Malay - Saya cintakan mu / Aku cinta padamu
Malayalam - Njan Ninne Premikunnu
Mandarin Chinese - Wo ai ni
Marathi - Me tula prem karto
Mohawk - Kanbhik
Moroccan - Ana moajaba bik
Nahuatl - Ni mits neki
Navaho - Ayor anosh'ni
Norwegian - Jeg Elsker Deg
Pandacan - Syota na kita!!
Pangasinan - Inaru Taka
Papiamento - Mi ta stimabo
Persian - Doo-set daaram
Pig Latin - Iay ovlay ouyay
Polish - Kocham Ciebie
Portuguese - Eu te amo
Romanian - Te iubesc
Russian - Ya tebya liubliu
Scot Gaelic - Tha gra\dh agam ort
Serbian - Volim te
Setswana - Ke a go rata
Sign Language - ,\,,/ (represents position of fingers when signing'I Love You')
Sindhi - Maa tokhe pyar kendo ahyan
Sioux - Techihhila
Slovak - Lu`bim ta
Slovenian - Ljubim te
Spanish - Te quiero / Te amo
Swahili - Ninapenda wewe
Swedish - Jag alskar dig
Swiss-German - Ich lieb Di
Tagalog - Mahal kita
Taiwanese - Wa ga ei li
Tahitian - Ua Here Vau Ia Oe
Tamil - Nan unnai kathalikaraen
Telugu - Nenu ninnu premistunnanu
Thai - Chan rak khun (to male)
Thai - Phom rak khun (to female)
Turkish - Seni Seviyorum
Ukrainian - Ya tebe kahayu
Urdu - mai aap say pyaar karta hoo
Vietnamese - Anh ye^u em (to female)
Vietnamese - Em ye^u anh (to male)
Welsh - 'Rwy'n dy garu di
Yiddish - Ikh hob dikh
Yoruba - Mo ni fe
Meaning of flowers!
A single bloom of red rose love at first sight or "I still love you"
A single rose in any colour indicates simplicity and gratitude
2 roses mutual feelings
3 roses "I love you"
7 roses "I'm infatuated with you"
9 roses "We'll be together forever"
10 roses "You are perfect"
11 roses "You are My Treasured One"
12 roses "Be mine!"
13 roses "Friends forever"
15 roses "I'm truly sorry"
20 roses "I'm truly sincere towards you"
21 roses "I'm dedicated to you"
24 roses "Forever yours"
25 roses Congratulations
36 roses "Remembering our romantic times"
40 roses "My genuine love for you"
50 roses Unconditional love
99 roses "I will love you all the days of my life"
101 roses "I'm completely devoted to you"
108 roses "Will you marry me?"
999 roses "I love you till the end of time"
Acacia Concealed Love; Beauty in Retirement; Chaste Love
Ambrosia Your Love is Reciprocated
Amaryllis Pride; Pastoral Poetry
Amaryllis/Hippeastrum I am proud of you; pride
Anemone Forsaken
Anemone/Mona Lisa I don't want to lose you
Anthurium, Red You work to get where you are
Anthurium, White Think of me
Arbutus Thee Only Do I Love
Aster Symbol of Love, Daintiness
Aster China Variety is the spice of life
Azalea Take Care of Yourself for Me; Temperance; Fragile Passion; Chinese Symbol of Womanhood
Bachelor Button Single Blessedness
Begonia Beware
Bells Of Ireland Good Luck
Bellflower / Campanula Gratitude
Bird of Paradise Flower Freedom, Good perspective
Bittersweet Truth
Butterfly Orchid You are always on my mind
Bluebell Humility
Cactus Endurance
Camellia, Pink Longing for you
Camellia, Red You're a Flame in My Heart
Camellia, White You're Adorable
Carnation, General Fascination; Woman Love
Carnation, Pink I'll Never Forget You; Motherly love
Carnation, Red My Heart Aches For You; Admiration;
I hold you in high esteem; respect
Carnation, Purple Capriciousness
Carnation, Solid Color Yes
Carnation, Striped No; Refusal; Sorry I Can't Be With You;
Wish I Could Be With You
Carnation, White Sweet and Lovely; Innocence; Pure Love;
Woman's Good Luck Gift
Carnation, Yellow You Have Disappointed Me; Rejection; Enjoy the moment
Cattail Peace; Prosperity
Celosia Fortune
Chrysanthemum, General You're a Wonderful Friend; Cheerfulness and Rest
Chrysanthemum, White Truth
Chrysanthemum, Yellow Slighted Love
Crocus Cheerfulness
Cyclamen Don't lose faith in me
Cypress Mourning
Cyclamen Resignation and Good-bye
Daffodil Regard; Unrequited Love; You're the Only One;
The Sun is Always Shining when I'm with You
Daffodil Narcissus You are an angel
Dahlia Fickleness
Daisy Innocence; Loyal Love; I'll Never Tell; Purity
Daisy, Garden I share your sentiment
Daisy, Red Joy
Daisy, White Innocence; truth
Daisy, Yellow I will try hard to earn your love
Dandelion Faithfulness; Happiness
FERN Magic; Fascination; Confidence and Shelter
FIR Time
FLAX Domestic Symbol
Flowering Cabbage Prosperity
Foget-Me-Not True Love; Memories
Forsythia Anticipation
Forget Me Not True love
Gardenia You're Lovely; Secret Love
Geranium Stupidity; Folly
Gerbera You are the sunshine of my life
Ginger, Pink Diversity
Ginger, Red Unlimited Wealth
Gladioli Give Me a Break; I'm Really Sincere; Flower of the Gladiators
Gladiolus / Sword Lily Strength of Character
Gloxinia Love at First Sight
Heather, Lavender Admiration; Solitude
Heather, White Protection; Wishes Will Come True
Helenium I miss you very much
Heliconia Great returns
Holly Defense; Domestic Happiness
Hyacinth, General Games and Sports; Rashness; Flower Dedicated to Apollo
Hyacinth, Blue Constancy; Predictability; reliable
Hyacinth, Purple I am Sorry; Please Forgive Me; Sorrow
Hyacinth, Red Or Pink Play
Hyacinth, White Loveliness; I'll Pray for You; Subtle and graceful
Hyacinth, Yellow Jealousy
Hyacinthus, Pink Active; energetic
Hydrangea Thank You for Understanding; Frigidity; Heartlessness; Arrogance; aloofness
Iris Fleur-de-lis; Emblem of France;
Your Friendship Means so Much to Me;
Faith; Hope; Wisdom and Valor;
My Compliments; Passion
Ivy Wedded Love; Fidelity; Friendship; Affection;
Friendship; fidelity; marriage
Jasmine Amiability
Jonquil Love Me; Affection Returned; Desire; Sympathy;
Desire for Affection Returned
Larkspur, White Joyful; happy-go-lucky
Larkspur, Pink Fickleness
Larkspur, Purple Sweet disposition
Lilac Field Humility
Lilac, Purple You are my first love
Lilac, White You are so pure and innocent
Lily of the Valley Return of happiness
Lily, Calla Your voice is music to my ears
Lily, Casablanca I am in heaven when I'm with you
Lily, Pink Romantic
Lily, Stargazer I see heaven in your eyes
Lily, Yellow Live for the moment; nothing is forever;
I'm Walking on Air; False and Gay
Lily, White Virginity; Purity; Majesty; It's Heavenly to be with You
My love is pure and innocent
Lily, Calla Beauty
Lily, Day Coquetry; Chinese Emblem for Mother
Lily, Eucharis Maiden Charms
Lily, Tiger Wealth; Pride
Lily Of The Valley Sweetness; Tears of the Virgin Mary; Return to Happiness; Humility; You've Made My Life Complete
Magnolia Nobility
Marigold Cruelty; Grief; Jealousy
Mistletoe Kiss me; Affection; To Surmount Difficulties;
Sacred Plant of India
Monkshood Beware; A Deadly Foe is Near
Moss Maternal Love; Charity
Myrtle Love; Hebrew Emblem of Marriage
Narcissus Egotism; Formality; Stay as Sweet as You Are
Nasturtium Conquest; Victory in Battle
Oleander Caution
Orange Blossom Innocence; Eternal Love; Marriage and Fruitfulness
Orange Mock Deceit
Orchid Love; Beauty; Refinement; Beautiful Lady;
Chinese Symbol for Many Children
Orchid, Cattleya Mature Charm
Paeonia Bashful
Palm leaves Victory and Success
Peony Shame; Happy Life; Happy Marriage
Petunia Resentment; Anger; Your Presence Sooths Me
Phlox A good partnership; harmony
Pine Hope; Pity
Poppy, Oriental Silence is golden
Poppy, Red Consolation; Pleasure
Poppy, Scarlet Extravagance
Poppy, White Tranquility; Consolation
Poppy, General Eternal Sleep; Oblivion; Imagination
Poppy, Yellow Wealth; Success
Primrose I Can't Live Without You
Primrose, Evening Inconstancy
Ranunculus You are very attractive
Rose, Black You are my obsession
Rose, Champagne You are tender & loving
Rose, Leonidas Sweet love
Rose, Nicole You are graceful & elegant; aristocratic
Rose, Orange You are my secret love
Rose, Pink Brilliant Complexion; the glow of your smile;
Perfect Happiness; Please Believe Me
Rose, Red Passionate love; Love; I Love You
Rose, Single Stems Simplicity
Rose, White I am worthy of you; spiritual love; Innocence and Purity;
I am Worthy of You; You're Heavenly; Secrecy and Silence
Rose, White & Red We are not separable; unity
Rose, White & Red Mixed Unity; Flower Emblem of England
Rose, White-Dried Death is Preferable to Loss of Virtue
Rose, Yellow I am not worthy of your love; Decrease of Love;
Jealousy; Try to Care
Rose, Bridal Happy Love
Rose, Dark Crimson Mourning
Rose, Hibiscus Delicate Beauty
Rose, Leaf You May Hope
Rose, Tea I'll Remember Always
Rose, Thornless Love at First Sight
Roses, Bouquet of Mature Blooms Gratitude
Roses, Single Full Bloom I Love You; I Still Love You
Rosebud Beauty and Youth; A Heart Innocent of Love
Rosebud, Red Pure and Lovely
Rosebud, White Girlhood
Rosebud, Moss Confessions of Love
Scabiosa Admiration
Scilla Forgive & forget
Snapdragon Please don't misunderstand
Snowball/Viburnum Commitment
Spider Flower Elope with Me
Stock Lasting beauty
Sunflower Adoration
Sweet Pea Delicate pleasures
Smilax Loveliness
Snapdragon Deception; Gracious Lady
Stephanotis Happiness in Marriage; Desire to Travel
Stock Bonds of Affection; Promptness;
You'll Always Be Beautiful to Me
Sweetpea Good-bye; Departure; Blissful Pleasure;
Thank You for a Lovely Time
Tulip, Cream I will love you forever
Tulip, Red Declaration of love; Believe Me; Declaration of Love
Tulip, Yellow I am hopelessly in love; There's Sunshine in Your Smile
Tulip, General Perfect Lover; Frame; Flower Emblem of Holland
Tulip, Variegated Beautiful Eyes
Veronica Fidelity
Violet Modesty
Violet, Blue Watchfulness; Faithfulness; I'll Always Be True
Violet, White Let's Take a Chance
Waratah Prosperity
Willow Bravery & humanity Zinnia Thoughts of absent friends
Zinnia, Magenta Lasting Affection
Zinnia, Mixed Thinking (or In Memory) of an Absent Friend
Zinnia, Scarlet Constancy
Zinnia, White Goodness
Zinnia, Yellow Daily Remembrance
I Love You in 100 Languages
English - I love you
Afrikaans - Ek het jou lief
Albanian - Te dua
Arabic - Ana behibak (to male)
Arabic - Ana behibek (to female)
Armenian - Yes kez sirumen
Bambara - M'bi fe
Bangla - Aamee tuma ke bhalo aashi
Belarusian - Ya tabe kahayu
Bisaya - Nahigugma ako kanimo
Bulgarian - Obicham te
Cambodian - Soro lahn nhee ah
Cantonese Chinese - Ngo oiy ney a
Catalan - T'estimo
Cheyenne - Ne mohotatse
Chichewa - Ndimakukonda
Corsican - Ti tengu caru (to male)
Creol - Mi aime jou
Croatian - Volim te
Czech - Miluji te
Danish - Jeg Elsker Dig
Dutch - Ik hou van jou
Esperanto - Mi amas vin
Estonian - Ma armastan sind
Ethiopian - Afgreki'
Faroese - Eg elski teg
Farsi - Doset daram
Filipino - Mahal kita
Finnish - Mina rakastan sinua
French - Je t'aime, Je t'adore
Frisian - Ik hâld fan dy
Gaelic - Ta gra agam ort
Georgian - Mikvarhar
German - Ich liebe dich
Greek - S'agapo
Gujarati - Hoo thunay prem karoo choo
Hiligaynon - Palangga ko ikaw
Hawaiian - Aloha wau ia oi
Hebrew - Ani ohev otah (to female)
Hebrew - Ani ohev et otha (to male)
Hiligaynon - Guina higugma ko ikaw
Hindi - Hum Tumhe Pyar Karte hae
Hmong - Kuv hlub koj
Hopi - Nu' umi unangwa'ta
Hungarian - Szeretlek
Icelandic - Eg elska tig
Ilonggo - Palangga ko ikaw
Indonesian - Saya cinta padamu
Inuit - Negligevapse
Irish - Taim i' ngra leat
Italian - Ti amo
Japanese - Aishiteru
Kannada - Naanu ninna preetisuttene
Kapampangan - Kaluguran daka
Kiswahili - Nakupenda
Konkani - Tu magel moga cho
Korean - Sarang Heyo
Latin - Te amo
Latvian - Es tevi miilu
Lebanese - Bahibak
Lithuanian - Tave myliu
Malay - Saya cintakan mu / Aku cinta padamu
Malayalam - Njan Ninne Premikunnu
Mandarin Chinese - Wo ai ni
Marathi - Me tula prem karto
Mohawk - Kanbhik
Moroccan - Ana moajaba bik
Nahuatl - Ni mits neki
Navaho - Ayor anosh'ni
Norwegian - Jeg Elsker Deg
Pandacan - Syota na kita!!
Pangasinan - Inaru Taka
Papiamento - Mi ta stimabo
Persian - Doo-set daaram
Pig Latin - Iay ovlay ouyay
Polish - Kocham Ciebie
Portuguese - Eu te amo
Romanian - Te iubesc
Russian - Ya tebya liubliu
Scot Gaelic - Tha gra\dh agam ort
Serbian - Volim te
Setswana - Ke a go rata
Sign Language - ,\,,/ (represents position of fingers when signing'I Love You')
Sindhi - Maa tokhe pyar kendo ahyan
Sioux - Techihhila
Slovak - Lu`bim ta
Slovenian - Ljubim te
Spanish - Te quiero / Te amo
Swahili - Ninapenda wewe
Swedish - Jag alskar dig
Swiss-German - Ich lieb Di
Tagalog - Mahal kita
Taiwanese - Wa ga ei li
Tahitian - Ua Here Vau Ia Oe
Tamil - Nan unnai kathalikaraen
Telugu - Nenu ninnu premistunnanu
Thai - Chan rak khun (to male)
Thai - Phom rak khun (to female)
Turkish - Seni Seviyorum
Ukrainian - Ya tebe kahayu
Urdu - mai aap say pyaar karta hoo
Vietnamese - Anh ye^u em (to female)
Vietnamese - Em ye^u anh (to male)
Welsh - 'Rwy'n dy garu di
Yiddish - Ikh hob dikh
Yoruba - Mo ni fe
Meaning of flowers!
A single bloom of red rose love at first sight or "I still love you"
A single rose in any colour indicates simplicity and gratitude
2 roses mutual feelings
3 roses "I love you"
7 roses "I'm infatuated with you"
9 roses "We'll be together forever"
10 roses "You are perfect"
11 roses "You are My Treasured One"
12 roses "Be mine!"
13 roses "Friends forever"
15 roses "I'm truly sorry"
20 roses "I'm truly sincere towards you"
21 roses "I'm dedicated to you"
24 roses "Forever yours"
25 roses Congratulations
36 roses "Remembering our romantic times"
40 roses "My genuine love for you"
50 roses Unconditional love
99 roses "I will love you all the days of my life"
101 roses "I'm completely devoted to you"
108 roses "Will you marry me?"
999 roses "I love you till the end of time"
Acacia Concealed Love; Beauty in Retirement; Chaste Love
Ambrosia Your Love is Reciprocated
Amaryllis Pride; Pastoral Poetry
Amaryllis/Hippeastrum I am proud of you; pride
Anemone Forsaken
Anemone/Mona Lisa I don't want to lose you
Anthurium, Red You work to get where you are
Anthurium, White Think of me
Arbutus Thee Only Do I Love
Aster Symbol of Love, Daintiness
Aster China Variety is the spice of life
Azalea Take Care of Yourself for Me; Temperance; Fragile Passion; Chinese Symbol of Womanhood
Bachelor Button Single Blessedness
Begonia Beware
Bells Of Ireland Good Luck
Bellflower / Campanula Gratitude
Bird of Paradise Flower Freedom, Good perspective
Bittersweet Truth
Butterfly Orchid You are always on my mind
Bluebell Humility
Cactus Endurance
Camellia, Pink Longing for you
Camellia, Red You're a Flame in My Heart
Camellia, White You're Adorable
Carnation, General Fascination; Woman Love
Carnation, Pink I'll Never Forget You; Motherly love
Carnation, Red My Heart Aches For You; Admiration;
I hold you in high esteem; respect
Carnation, Purple Capriciousness
Carnation, Solid Color Yes
Carnation, Striped No; Refusal; Sorry I Can't Be With You;
Wish I Could Be With You
Carnation, White Sweet and Lovely; Innocence; Pure Love;
Woman's Good Luck Gift
Carnation, Yellow You Have Disappointed Me; Rejection; Enjoy the moment
Cattail Peace; Prosperity
Celosia Fortune
Chrysanthemum, General You're a Wonderful Friend; Cheerfulness and Rest
Chrysanthemum, White Truth
Chrysanthemum, Yellow Slighted Love
Crocus Cheerfulness
Cyclamen Don't lose faith in me
Cypress Mourning
Cyclamen Resignation and Good-bye
Daffodil Regard; Unrequited Love; You're the Only One;
The Sun is Always Shining when I'm with You
Daffodil Narcissus You are an angel
Dahlia Fickleness
Daisy Innocence; Loyal Love; I'll Never Tell; Purity
Daisy, Garden I share your sentiment
Daisy, Red Joy
Daisy, White Innocence; truth
Daisy, Yellow I will try hard to earn your love
Dandelion Faithfulness; Happiness
FERN Magic; Fascination; Confidence and Shelter
FIR Time
FLAX Domestic Symbol
Flowering Cabbage Prosperity
Foget-Me-Not True Love; Memories
Forsythia Anticipation
Forget Me Not True love
Gardenia You're Lovely; Secret Love
Geranium Stupidity; Folly
Gerbera You are the sunshine of my life
Ginger, Pink Diversity
Ginger, Red Unlimited Wealth
Gladioli Give Me a Break; I'm Really Sincere; Flower of the Gladiators
Gladiolus / Sword Lily Strength of Character
Gloxinia Love at First Sight
Heather, Lavender Admiration; Solitude
Heather, White Protection; Wishes Will Come True
Helenium I miss you very much
Heliconia Great returns
Holly Defense; Domestic Happiness
Hyacinth, General Games and Sports; Rashness; Flower Dedicated to Apollo
Hyacinth, Blue Constancy; Predictability; reliable
Hyacinth, Purple I am Sorry; Please Forgive Me; Sorrow
Hyacinth, Red Or Pink Play
Hyacinth, White Loveliness; I'll Pray for You; Subtle and graceful
Hyacinth, Yellow Jealousy
Hyacinthus, Pink Active; energetic
Hydrangea Thank You for Understanding; Frigidity; Heartlessness; Arrogance; aloofness
Iris Fleur-de-lis; Emblem of France;
Your Friendship Means so Much to Me;
Faith; Hope; Wisdom and Valor;
My Compliments; Passion
Ivy Wedded Love; Fidelity; Friendship; Affection;
Friendship; fidelity; marriage
Jasmine Amiability
Jonquil Love Me; Affection Returned; Desire; Sympathy;
Desire for Affection Returned
Larkspur, White Joyful; happy-go-lucky
Larkspur, Pink Fickleness
Larkspur, Purple Sweet disposition
Lilac Field Humility
Lilac, Purple You are my first love
Lilac, White You are so pure and innocent
Lily of the Valley Return of happiness
Lily, Calla Your voice is music to my ears
Lily, Casablanca I am in heaven when I'm with you
Lily, Pink Romantic
Lily, Stargazer I see heaven in your eyes
Lily, Yellow Live for the moment; nothing is forever;
I'm Walking on Air; False and Gay
Lily, White Virginity; Purity; Majesty; It's Heavenly to be with You
My love is pure and innocent
Lily, Calla Beauty
Lily, Day Coquetry; Chinese Emblem for Mother
Lily, Eucharis Maiden Charms
Lily, Tiger Wealth; Pride
Lily Of The Valley Sweetness; Tears of the Virgin Mary; Return to Happiness; Humility; You've Made My Life Complete
Magnolia Nobility
Marigold Cruelty; Grief; Jealousy
Mistletoe Kiss me; Affection; To Surmount Difficulties;
Sacred Plant of India
Monkshood Beware; A Deadly Foe is Near
Moss Maternal Love; Charity
Myrtle Love; Hebrew Emblem of Marriage
Narcissus Egotism; Formality; Stay as Sweet as You Are
Nasturtium Conquest; Victory in Battle
Oleander Caution
Orange Blossom Innocence; Eternal Love; Marriage and Fruitfulness
Orange Mock Deceit
Orchid Love; Beauty; Refinement; Beautiful Lady;
Chinese Symbol for Many Children
Orchid, Cattleya Mature Charm
Paeonia Bashful
Palm leaves Victory and Success
Peony Shame; Happy Life; Happy Marriage
Petunia Resentment; Anger; Your Presence Sooths Me
Phlox A good partnership; harmony
Pine Hope; Pity
Poppy, Oriental Silence is golden
Poppy, Red Consolation; Pleasure
Poppy, Scarlet Extravagance
Poppy, White Tranquility; Consolation
Poppy, General Eternal Sleep; Oblivion; Imagination
Poppy, Yellow Wealth; Success
Primrose I Can't Live Without You
Primrose, Evening Inconstancy
Ranunculus You are very attractive
Rose, Black You are my obsession
Rose, Champagne You are tender & loving
Rose, Leonidas Sweet love
Rose, Nicole You are graceful & elegant; aristocratic
Rose, Orange You are my secret love
Rose, Pink Brilliant Complexion; the glow of your smile;
Perfect Happiness; Please Believe Me
Rose, Red Passionate love; Love; I Love You
Rose, Single Stems Simplicity
Rose, White I am worthy of you; spiritual love; Innocence and Purity;
I am Worthy of You; You're Heavenly; Secrecy and Silence
Rose, White & Red We are not separable; unity
Rose, White & Red Mixed Unity; Flower Emblem of England
Rose, White-Dried Death is Preferable to Loss of Virtue
Rose, Yellow I am not worthy of your love; Decrease of Love;
Jealousy; Try to Care
Rose, Bridal Happy Love
Rose, Dark Crimson Mourning
Rose, Hibiscus Delicate Beauty
Rose, Leaf You May Hope
Rose, Tea I'll Remember Always
Rose, Thornless Love at First Sight
Roses, Bouquet of Mature Blooms Gratitude
Roses, Single Full Bloom I Love You; I Still Love You
Rosebud Beauty and Youth; A Heart Innocent of Love
Rosebud, Red Pure and Lovely
Rosebud, White Girlhood
Rosebud, Moss Confessions of Love
Scabiosa Admiration
Scilla Forgive & forget
Snapdragon Please don't misunderstand
Snowball/Viburnum Commitment
Spider Flower Elope with Me
Stock Lasting beauty
Sunflower Adoration
Sweet Pea Delicate pleasures
Smilax Loveliness
Snapdragon Deception; Gracious Lady
Stephanotis Happiness in Marriage; Desire to Travel
Stock Bonds of Affection; Promptness;
You'll Always Be Beautiful to Me
Sweetpea Good-bye; Departure; Blissful Pleasure;
Thank You for a Lovely Time
Tulip, Cream I will love you forever
Tulip, Red Declaration of love; Believe Me; Declaration of Love
Tulip, Yellow I am hopelessly in love; There's Sunshine in Your Smile
Tulip, General Perfect Lover; Frame; Flower Emblem of Holland
Tulip, Variegated Beautiful Eyes
Veronica Fidelity
Violet Modesty
Violet, Blue Watchfulness; Faithfulness; I'll Always Be True
Violet, White Let's Take a Chance
Waratah Prosperity
Willow Bravery & humanity Zinnia Thoughts of absent friends
Zinnia, Magenta Lasting Affection
Zinnia, Mixed Thinking (or In Memory) of an Absent Friend
Zinnia, Scarlet Constancy
Zinnia, White Goodness
Zinnia, Yellow Daily Remembrance
Updated the blog!
Just updated the blog with the links to all of my friends who I visit often, this is to allow me to visit their blogs even if I am in school! Hope everyone is doing fine! Thanks to all for allowing me link to their blogs. Keep in touch yeah? Got to hit the books now! Yosh! :)
Thursday, February 05, 2004
Friends...
Harlow, guess this is the time for interesting articles, have not have the time to write myself. Do bear with me as I am undergoing a lot of reorganisation. Thanks a lot. In the meantime, I got this in my email from a classmate of mine. Hope all of you would enjoy it! Cheers!
The Red Ribbon by Staci Stallings
Everyone wants to win a first-place blue ribbon, to be the best in something. Even kids in kindergarten want that blue ribbon. In sports, I was never a blue-ribbon person. In a race I was always last. In baseball I was likely to be hit on the head or drop the ball. In basketball I was fine as long as there weren't other players on the court with me. I don't know where I got my horrible sports ability, but I got it - and got it early.
During the spring of my kindergarten year, our class had a field trip to a park in a town about twenty miles away. Making that drive now is no big deal, but when you're six and you've lived in a town of 300 people all your life, going to a big town of a couple of thousand people is a major event. I don't remember much of that day, but I'm sure we ate our little sack lunches, played on the swings and slid down the slide - typical six-year-old stuff. Then it was time for the races.
These were no ordinary races. Someone had come up with the idea to have picnic kind of races, like pass the potato under your neck and hold an egg on a spoon while you run to the finish line. I don't remember too much about those, but there was one that I will never forget - the three-legged race.
The parents decided not to use potato sacks for this particular event. Instead, they tied our feet together. One lucky little boy got me for a partner. Now what you have to know about this little boy is that he was the second most athletic boy in our class. I'm sure he knew he was in trouble the second they laced his foot to mine. As for me, I was mortified. This guy was a winner. He usually won at everything, and I knew that with me tied to him he didn't have a chance.
Apparently, he didn't realize that as deeply as I did at the time. He laced his arm with mine, the gun sounded and we were off. Couples were falling and stumbling all around us, but we stayed on our feet and made it to the other side. Unbelievably, when we turned around and headed back for home, we were in the lead! Only one other couple had a chance to win, and they were a good several yards behind us.
A few feet from the finish line, disaster struck: I tripped and fell. We were close enough that my partner could have easily dragged me across the finish line and won. He could have, but he didn't. Instead, he stopped, reached down and helped me up - just as the other couple crossed the finish line. We received a small red ribbon for coming in second.
I still remember that moment, and I still have that little red ribbon. When we graduated thirteen years later, I stood on the stage and gave the valedictory address to the same group of students, none of whom even remembered that moment anymore. I told them about the young boy who had made a split-second decision and decided that helping a friend get on her feet was more important than winning a blue ribbon. I said, "One of the boys sitting up here on the stage is that young boy, but I won't tell you which one he is." I wouldn't tell because in truth, at one time or another, all of them had been that little boy - helping me up when I fell, taking time out from their pursuit of their own goals to help a fellow person in need.
And I told them why I'd kept the ribbon. "You see, to me that ribbon is a reminder that you don't have to be a winner in the eyes of the world to be a winner to those closest to you. The world may judge you a failure or a success, but those closest to you will know the truth. That's important to remember as we travel through life."
You may not have a red ribbon to prove it, but I sincerely hope you have at least a few friends who took time out from their pursuit of the world's blue ribbons to help you. I'm thinking those friends will be the ones who really count - I know that such a friend was the one who counted the most to me.
The Red Ribbon by Staci Stallings
Everyone wants to win a first-place blue ribbon, to be the best in something. Even kids in kindergarten want that blue ribbon. In sports, I was never a blue-ribbon person. In a race I was always last. In baseball I was likely to be hit on the head or drop the ball. In basketball I was fine as long as there weren't other players on the court with me. I don't know where I got my horrible sports ability, but I got it - and got it early.
During the spring of my kindergarten year, our class had a field trip to a park in a town about twenty miles away. Making that drive now is no big deal, but when you're six and you've lived in a town of 300 people all your life, going to a big town of a couple of thousand people is a major event. I don't remember much of that day, but I'm sure we ate our little sack lunches, played on the swings and slid down the slide - typical six-year-old stuff. Then it was time for the races.
These were no ordinary races. Someone had come up with the idea to have picnic kind of races, like pass the potato under your neck and hold an egg on a spoon while you run to the finish line. I don't remember too much about those, but there was one that I will never forget - the three-legged race.
The parents decided not to use potato sacks for this particular event. Instead, they tied our feet together. One lucky little boy got me for a partner. Now what you have to know about this little boy is that he was the second most athletic boy in our class. I'm sure he knew he was in trouble the second they laced his foot to mine. As for me, I was mortified. This guy was a winner. He usually won at everything, and I knew that with me tied to him he didn't have a chance.
Apparently, he didn't realize that as deeply as I did at the time. He laced his arm with mine, the gun sounded and we were off. Couples were falling and stumbling all around us, but we stayed on our feet and made it to the other side. Unbelievably, when we turned around and headed back for home, we were in the lead! Only one other couple had a chance to win, and they were a good several yards behind us.
A few feet from the finish line, disaster struck: I tripped and fell. We were close enough that my partner could have easily dragged me across the finish line and won. He could have, but he didn't. Instead, he stopped, reached down and helped me up - just as the other couple crossed the finish line. We received a small red ribbon for coming in second.
I still remember that moment, and I still have that little red ribbon. When we graduated thirteen years later, I stood on the stage and gave the valedictory address to the same group of students, none of whom even remembered that moment anymore. I told them about the young boy who had made a split-second decision and decided that helping a friend get on her feet was more important than winning a blue ribbon. I said, "One of the boys sitting up here on the stage is that young boy, but I won't tell you which one he is." I wouldn't tell because in truth, at one time or another, all of them had been that little boy - helping me up when I fell, taking time out from their pursuit of their own goals to help a fellow person in need.
And I told them why I'd kept the ribbon. "You see, to me that ribbon is a reminder that you don't have to be a winner in the eyes of the world to be a winner to those closest to you. The world may judge you a failure or a success, but those closest to you will know the truth. That's important to remember as we travel through life."
You may not have a red ribbon to prove it, but I sincerely hope you have at least a few friends who took time out from their pursuit of the world's blue ribbons to help you. I'm thinking those friends will be the ones who really count - I know that such a friend was the one who counted the most to me.
Wednesday, February 04, 2004
Another interesting article.
Hmmm... since can't find my handphone. So I will be going without a handphone for quiet a while. If any of you guys are looking for me, do email me. I check my e-mail pretty often. My e-mail is sandrock_79@yahoo.co.uk. Anyway, have more interesting article for all of you. This time is from Unknown. :)
The Salty Coffee
He met her at a party. She was so outstanding, many guys chasing after her, while he was so normal, nobody paid attention to him.
At the end of the party, he invited her to have coffee with him, she was surprised but due to being polite, she promised. They sat in a nice coffee shop, he was too nervous to say anything, she felt uncomfortable, she thought to herself, "Please, let me go home.."
Suddenly he asked the waiter, "Would you please give me some salt? I'd like to put it in my coffee."
Everybody stared at him, so strange! His face turned red but still, he put the salt in his coffee and drank it.
She asked him curiously, "Why you have this hobby?"
He replied, "When I was a little boy, I lived near the sea, I liked playing in the sea, I could feel the taste of the sea , just like the taste of the salty coffee. Now every time I have the salty coffee, I always think of my childhood, think of my hometown, I miss my hometown so much, I miss my parents who are still living there."
While saying that tears filled his eyes. She was deeply touched. That's his true feeling, from the bottom of his heart. A man who can tell out his homesickness, he must be a man who loves home, cares about home, has responsibility of home ... Then she also started to speak, spoke about her faraway hometown, her childhood, her family.
That was a really nice talk, also a beautiful beginning of their story. They continued to date. She found that actually he was a man who meets all her demands; he had tolerance, was kind hearted, warm, careful. He was such a good person but she almost missed him! Thanks to his salty coffee!
Then the story was just like every beautiful love story, the princess married to the prince, then they were living the happy life... And, every time she made coffee for him, she put some salt in the coffee, as she knew that's the way he liked it.
After 40 years, he passed away, left her a letter which said, "My dearest, please forgive me, forgive my whole life's lie. This was the only lie I said to you --- the salty coffee.
Remember the first time we dated? I was so nervous at that time, actually I wanted some sugar, but I said salt. It was hard for me to change so I just went ahead. I never thought that could be the start of our communication!
I tried to tell you the truth many times in my life, but I was too afraid to do that, as I have promised not to lie to you for anything.. Now I'm dying, I afraid of nothing so I tell you the truth, I don't like the salty coffee, what a strange bad taste..
But I have had the salty coffee for my whole life!
Since I knew you, I never feel sorry for anything I do for you. Having you with me is my biggest happiness for my whole life. If I can live for the second time, still want to know you and have you for my whole life, even though I have to drink the salty coffee again."
Her tears made the letter totally wet.
Someday, someone asked her, "What's the taste of salty coffee?"
She replied, "It's sweet."
Love begins with a smile, grows with a kiss and ends with a tear.
True love hears what is not spoken and understands what is not explained, for love doesn't work in the mouth, nor the mind, but in the heart...
The Salty Coffee
He met her at a party. She was so outstanding, many guys chasing after her, while he was so normal, nobody paid attention to him.
At the end of the party, he invited her to have coffee with him, she was surprised but due to being polite, she promised. They sat in a nice coffee shop, he was too nervous to say anything, she felt uncomfortable, she thought to herself, "Please, let me go home.."
Suddenly he asked the waiter, "Would you please give me some salt? I'd like to put it in my coffee."
Everybody stared at him, so strange! His face turned red but still, he put the salt in his coffee and drank it.
She asked him curiously, "Why you have this hobby?"
He replied, "When I was a little boy, I lived near the sea, I liked playing in the sea, I could feel the taste of the sea , just like the taste of the salty coffee. Now every time I have the salty coffee, I always think of my childhood, think of my hometown, I miss my hometown so much, I miss my parents who are still living there."
While saying that tears filled his eyes. She was deeply touched. That's his true feeling, from the bottom of his heart. A man who can tell out his homesickness, he must be a man who loves home, cares about home, has responsibility of home ... Then she also started to speak, spoke about her faraway hometown, her childhood, her family.
That was a really nice talk, also a beautiful beginning of their story. They continued to date. She found that actually he was a man who meets all her demands; he had tolerance, was kind hearted, warm, careful. He was such a good person but she almost missed him! Thanks to his salty coffee!
Then the story was just like every beautiful love story, the princess married to the prince, then they were living the happy life... And, every time she made coffee for him, she put some salt in the coffee, as she knew that's the way he liked it.
After 40 years, he passed away, left her a letter which said, "My dearest, please forgive me, forgive my whole life's lie. This was the only lie I said to you --- the salty coffee.
Remember the first time we dated? I was so nervous at that time, actually I wanted some sugar, but I said salt. It was hard for me to change so I just went ahead. I never thought that could be the start of our communication!
I tried to tell you the truth many times in my life, but I was too afraid to do that, as I have promised not to lie to you for anything.. Now I'm dying, I afraid of nothing so I tell you the truth, I don't like the salty coffee, what a strange bad taste..
But I have had the salty coffee for my whole life!
Since I knew you, I never feel sorry for anything I do for you. Having you with me is my biggest happiness for my whole life. If I can live for the second time, still want to know you and have you for my whole life, even though I have to drink the salty coffee again."
Her tears made the letter totally wet.
Someday, someone asked her, "What's the taste of salty coffee?"
She replied, "It's sweet."
Love begins with a smile, grows with a kiss and ends with a tear.
True love hears what is not spoken and understands what is not explained, for love doesn't work in the mouth, nor the mind, but in the heart...
Tuesday, February 03, 2004
An interesting read...
Harlow all, got an interesting article from the email sent by my godsister. Yosh! Here you all go... :)
There was this guy who loved two gals at the same time but he didn't know which one he loved more. Someone taught him.
Ask yourself this question and answer it honestly: "When you are happy, which gal would you want to share your happiness with?" The one you think of is someone you love.
Ask yourself another question and answer it honestly: "When you are sad, which gal you want to share your burden with?" The one you think of is also someone you love.
If you think of the same gal when you are happy & sad, that's the most perfect. But if you don't think of the same gal, I would advise you to chose the one you are willing to share your sadness with.
In life, there are more sorrows than happiness. There are too many people that u meet that u can share your happiness with, not necessary your lover.
If you live your life happily, you can also enjoy it alone. In sadness, however, there are not many people willing to
share your burden with you. If you are willing to tell someone your happiness, I am sure that person has got to be someone close & an understanding person to you.
But it shouldn't stop there. If that person only thinks of you when she is happy, but looks for someone else when she is sad, this lover is too unstable, she doesn't treat you as someone she can spend the rest of her life with.
Of course, I will be very happy if I am the first person to share her happiness. But, if she is sad, I will be too
willing to stay by her side & ease her pain.
Only then, will I believe that I hold a very important position in her heart. If you are sad, who comes to your mind first?
********************
Friendship is a strange thing.
We find ourselves telling each other the deepest details of our lives...
things we don't even share with the families who raised us.
But what is a friend?
A confidant?
A shoulder to cry on?
An ear to listen?
A heart to feel?
A friend is all these ... and more.
No matter where we met, no matter how long we've been together... I call you friend.
A word so small, yet so large in feeling,
a word filled with emotion,
a word overflowing with love.
Truly great things come in small packages.
Once the package of friendship has been opened,
it can never be closed.
It is a constant book always waiting...
waiting to be read... and enjoyed.
We may have our disagreements...
We may have our disappointments...
We may argue...
We may have concern for one another...
Friendship is a unique bond that lasts through all tribulations.
A part of each of us goes into our friendships...
Our humor...
Our experiences...
Our tears.
Friendships are foundations...
Necessary for life... and love.
Friends...
You and me...
You brought another friend and then we were three...
We started our group...
Our circle of friends...
There is no beginning...
There is no end.
Sometimes God wants us to meet many wrong people.
So that when the right one comes along, we will appreciate that person more.
There was this guy who loved two gals at the same time but he didn't know which one he loved more. Someone taught him.
Ask yourself this question and answer it honestly: "When you are happy, which gal would you want to share your happiness with?" The one you think of is someone you love.
Ask yourself another question and answer it honestly: "When you are sad, which gal you want to share your burden with?" The one you think of is also someone you love.
If you think of the same gal when you are happy & sad, that's the most perfect. But if you don't think of the same gal, I would advise you to chose the one you are willing to share your sadness with.
In life, there are more sorrows than happiness. There are too many people that u meet that u can share your happiness with, not necessary your lover.
If you live your life happily, you can also enjoy it alone. In sadness, however, there are not many people willing to
share your burden with you. If you are willing to tell someone your happiness, I am sure that person has got to be someone close & an understanding person to you.
But it shouldn't stop there. If that person only thinks of you when she is happy, but looks for someone else when she is sad, this lover is too unstable, she doesn't treat you as someone she can spend the rest of her life with.
Of course, I will be very happy if I am the first person to share her happiness. But, if she is sad, I will be too
willing to stay by her side & ease her pain.
Only then, will I believe that I hold a very important position in her heart. If you are sad, who comes to your mind first?
********************
Friendship is a strange thing.
We find ourselves telling each other the deepest details of our lives...
things we don't even share with the families who raised us.
But what is a friend?
A confidant?
A shoulder to cry on?
An ear to listen?
A heart to feel?
A friend is all these ... and more.
No matter where we met, no matter how long we've been together... I call you friend.
A word so small, yet so large in feeling,
a word filled with emotion,
a word overflowing with love.
Truly great things come in small packages.
Once the package of friendship has been opened,
it can never be closed.
It is a constant book always waiting...
waiting to be read... and enjoyed.
We may have our disagreements...
We may have our disappointments...
We may argue...
We may have concern for one another...
Friendship is a unique bond that lasts through all tribulations.
A part of each of us goes into our friendships...
Our humor...
Our experiences...
Our tears.
Friendships are foundations...
Necessary for life... and love.
Friends...
You and me...
You brought another friend and then we were three...
We started our group...
Our circle of friends...
There is no beginning...
There is no end.
Sometimes God wants us to meet many wrong people.
So that when the right one comes along, we will appreciate that person more.
Lost of handphone...
Hmmm... Not a very good day. May have somewhat lost my handphone. Anyway, still thank God this day, at least I lived to see another day. Hopefully, I will be more careful from now on. Have not be able to blog much too. Due to heavy workload and all the holidays. Will try to look into this soon. Yosh!
