Before you begin reading today’s message, I thought you might want to listen to  Whitney Houston’s rendition of a song most of us learned as a child and have loved for years. It’s always good to be reminded that Jesus loves us. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HGeb3jipRZw 

God loves you and has a plan for your life. This is the most important fact of your life! Think about the impact that believing that truth can have on your life. Do you believe there is a God who is the Creator and ultimate authority of this world? The Bible tells us this is true. God created the world and all that is in it. He is sovereign and in ultimate control of the course of human history. 

The Bible also tells you that God loves you! What an amazing thought, that God loves us! Believing this truth deep down in your heart can make all the difference in your life! 

We were created by God to live in relationships with Him and others. For example, you were born to human parents who were supposed to love you and have authority over you until you could take authority for yourself. Did it matter to you if you believed your parents loved you and encouraged you to do well in life? 

It is critical to the emotional development of a child to have a sense that they are loved and highly valued by their parents. The absence of this sense of love and security from a parent often makes it difficult to accept the fact that God loves you. However, our emotional damage from an unloving parent doesn’t change the fact, the reality that God loves you. We must accept His love as an act of faith and allow God to show us how much He loves us. 

Believing God loves you and has a plan is life-changing because it is the basis, the foundation for a good relationship with God himself. The depth of your belief in this truth affects everything you believe about God and how you think and live.

At the close of this blog I’ve put a link to a short video I encourage you to watch. I found the video when I “googled” the question, “How do I know God loves me?”  Look for the link.

God loves you and has a plan for your life.  Is this truth an active reality in your thinking and living?

If you’ve grown up going to church or have been raised in a Christian home, this is something you have probably heard for a long time. “Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so..” Maybe it’s one of those ideas you’ve heard so many times you don’t think about it much anymore. But, you and I need to think about it! We need to think deeply about it because understanding that God, the Creator of this universe, loves us is critical to living a purposeful and fulfilling life.

Why do I say believing this truth is so important? Jesus tells us in John 3:16 that God loves us. We should take Jesus at His word, but why is it important to believe this?

When you know someone loves you, you trust them to always try to do what is best for you. That kind of love between a man and a woman is a wonderful thing. That kind of love helps our children feel secure and trust us even when they don’t like our decisions.

Now, think about what being loved by God implies. Knowing I am loved by God means I can trust the events of my daily life and my future to His wisdom. This kind of security bolsters my faith in Him when times are tough. In those times, I know He is working in “everything for good” for me. (Romans 8:28). Being confident that God loves me gives me hope in difficult times and encourages me to live obediently under His care. Knowing how God has taken care of me also evokes a sense of gratitude in me. Click this link to see what I mean https://www.cosdavis.com/gratitude/

God loves you and has a Plan for your life. That’s right, our loving Father has a plan for our lives. I’m not thinking specifically about the work or profession we will have on earth. God certainly can and will lead us in our vocational choices but God has a greater plan than that for us! This plan is for you, me, and everyone who confesses faith in Jesus as our Savior.

If you think Jesus died on the cross and rose again to just save you from hell, you need to listen up. Yes, if you truly trust in Jesus you will go to heaven, but God has a plan for you now, today, while you are alive here on earth.

Specifically, he plans to make a new person out of you. He’s not going to leave you alone. He wants to change the way you think, and the way you treat Him, yourself, and others. He wants to continue the change He began in you when you first trusted Him. And, where is this plan leading? He wants to make you like Jesus. You can read it for yourself in Romans 8:29.  

This truth is central to the Christian worldview. God has created you in His image and has a plan to save you from your sin, pride, and selfishness. This plan is often referred to by terms such as salvation and sanctification. God’s loving plan begins as His Spirit awakens you to God’s love and forgiveness provided through the cross and resurrection of Jesus.

Once you have responded in faith to God’s offer of eternal life through the work of Jesus, He goes about the process of accomplishing His ultimate purpose for you, to form in you the very character of Jesus.

That’s right, God’s master plan is to use your life experiences, the good and the difficult, to form the character of Jesus in you. His plan is for you to live a surrendered, obedient life in which you live in the power of His Spirit and consciously, proactively dedicate, and use your time, money, energies, and talents to serve Him and others. I cover this subject extensively in my book, Heaven’s Currency, Investing In The Things That Matter Most.

You can purchase the book at a reduced cost now at http://www.cosdavis.com or at regular price at http://amazon.com.

God loves you and has a plan for your life! That may sound incredible but it’s true. Say it aloud to yourself. “God loves me and has a plan for my life.” Repeat it every morning.  Embrace it. Give yourself to Him and watch Him work in your life. God loves you. Slow down for a minute and let that soak in.

 

 

Now, here’s the video link I promised you.https://www.mathetis.org/lp/does-god-love-me/?gclid=CjwKCAjwmJeYBhAwEiwAXlg0AeLMeT48Tdq-4mlE5bK3IWQq24sMqdtu6dMA_a_U_LlJL_L80cSV0RoC8_8QAvD_BwE