26 Wednesday Mar 2014
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God’s love for us is pretty amazing. His love is pure, perfect, and unconditional. God never asked us to to anything for His love, including being good, better, or perfect. He simply gave His love freely and asked us to accept it. Romans 5:8 says, But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Whenever we feel unloved we can remember how God loved us before we ever ever felt loved or turned to Him.
19 Wednesday Mar 2014
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Today we come to the end of this 2 Corinthians. Paul covered quite a bit in this book and in today’s closing remarks he said something that caught my attention in verse 11, Finally, brothers, good-by! Aim for perfection, listen to my appeal, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you. Beyond his plea to listen to his appeals for living a life which aims for perfection (even though we will never truly attain it), Paul says “live in peace”. He is speaking to the church as a whole. What troubles me is how far we as believers have gone from accomplishing this request. Beyond the fact that we live within a system of countless denominations, the addition of social media has allowed us to enter into the practice of tearing others down, including other believers in a passive-aggressive and, at times, in a very public manner. We have chosen to disregard private correction and admonishment for public ridicule and embarrassment. Of all the ways we sin as believers, to me, this is one of the most heartbreaking. We claim to love the sinner and, in turn, sacrifice other believers in their place. I would hope one day soon we will begin to love one another from the inside of the body of believers out, allowing our inertia to bring more people to the love of Christ in the way God intended.
18 Tuesday Mar 2014
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I know I have shared 2 Corinthians 12:9 before, but it is so good! But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. When you feel like you just can’t do enough to make things right it’s because you can’t… No really, you can’t! There is nothing we can do to fix our lives and reach the level of grace God has already provided for us. It is in our weakness that God shows up and gives us the rest we so desperately need. When we open up our clenched hands and allow God to take away the things we hang onto and let Him replace it with His perfect plan, we find peace and the love the way it was intended to be.
16 Sunday Mar 2014
Posted in Reflection
These past few weeks I have struggle with feeling peace in my life. I know it seems foolish that someone who spends daily time in God’s word could ever feel the way I have, but I am human and we all struggle. One of my mentors suggested I spend time each morning doing two things: 1) Before I do anything else, pray first thing in the morning when I get out of bed. 2) Immediately after prayer, meditate on Ephesians 6:13-17 where Paul talks about putting on the full armor of God. I have to admit, at first, I did not think either of his suggestions would work. But I cannot tell you the impact they have had on my day. Each day I am reminded God is they only way I can receive true peace in my life. Without God’s armor we are susceptible to the lies that keep us from fully knowing His truths about how much He loves us. These simple changes in my daily routine have made a major impact on my day. It is a daily effort, but there is a noticeable difference. Over time I hope these words will be etched in my heart and mind, but until then, I will continue to read and concentrate on God’s promises for my life.
If you ever come across anything you’d like me to post on this blog, please feel free to contact me at dino.evangelista@gmail.com.
11 Tuesday Mar 2014
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I see believers working harder each day to show the unbelieving world the love of of God in a more deliberate way. I believe this is crucial to bringing people into a relationship with God. However, there is a danger when we compromise our beliefs and the truth in order to be more readily accepted by the non-believing world. 2 Corinthian 6:14 says, Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? We must guard our hearts and minds from the influences of this world no matter how noble our intentions may be. God calls us to be separate in our thinking and acceptance of sin while accepting the person He created and loves as much as He loves us. Our only role is simply to be a reflection of God and allow His love, grace, and mercy to bring them into a relationship with Him.
09 Sunday Mar 2014
Posted in Reflection
If you have never heard of the Hip-hop artist Lecrae, then you have missed out. In this video he opens up about his past of crime, anger, and trouble, which ultimately led him to experience redemption through a powerful experience with God. I hope you enjoy this video as much as I did.
If you ever come across anything you’d like me to post on this blog, please feel free to contact me at dino.evangelista@gmail.com.
03 Monday Mar 2014
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In the beginning of today’s reading Paul talks about having to work harder than the other apostles to preach the gospel. Paul is not boasting, he is simply explaining the hurdle he had to overcome because of his past life as a persecutor of the early church. In 1 Corinthians 15:10 he says, But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. Because of our past we are sometimes forced to work hard to overcome the perception of others. This has nothing to do with the grace God has granted to each of us. As Paul stated “by the grace of God I am what I am.” Who we are is established by God and not by men. Men are always welcome to their opinions, but that is all it is… an opinion.
16 Sunday Feb 2014
Posted in Reflection
Lacey Sturm is the former lead singer of the band Flyleaf. In this video she unashamedly talks about how she found purpose in life through a relationship with God. Her life was not easy, but God was able to love her and heal her back into life that has an eternal impact on others. I hope this video impacts you as much as it does me.
If you ever come across anything you’d like me to post on this blog, please feel free to contact me at dino.evangelista@gmail.com.
13 Thursday Feb 2014
Posted in Daily Reading
One of the key things that stood out to me in today’s reading and, which is true to our present day, is the gospel is disruptive. We sometimes want the gospel to be all about peace and love, and while those things are true, it is also about shining light on what is evil. God is the perfect light and when He shines, everything is exposed. We should not be afraid of His light, we should be thankful that He loves us enough to help us fix what is wrong so we can experience true peace and love that comes from a pure existence.
08 Saturday Feb 2014
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1 Thessalonians 5 is a power chapter. It speaks plainly about doing what is right and not just knowing what is right. It is also a very encouraging chapter for all believers. One of the strongest is verses 8, But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet. Faith, Hope, and Love are repeated throughout the New Testament as important aspects of our lives as believer. Let us never forget to make them a part of our daily lives.
Daily Devotion 