Feb 12

All Christians, whatever their level of love, belong to God's family. It is no disgrace to be at a lower level of knowledge of God if one has a desire to grow in the Lord and know him better. The only disgrace would be to not strive to grow and live at a deeper level with the Lord. Once that level is reached, we think nothing of pouring ourselves out for the Lord, just as the jar woman poured out the jar of expensive perfume on Jesus.

Others may be offended by what they consider to be such extravagant waste, but we have measured the cost to ourselves and are willing to pay it. If we have done this, we can be sure that we will be misunderstood.

The world certainly does not understand such devotion and extravagant love. It calls us fanatics. This we can understand, because we know that those who do not know Christ cannot know the depths of his love and the depths of response that love sparks in those who receive it.

"The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned" (1 Cor.2:14).

We know God's love because we have the Spirit of God -- the very Spirit of God -- within us, and it is He who gives us understanding.

Scripture for today: 1 Cor. 2:12
Thought for today: I cannot understand the things of God on my own, but the Holy Spirit enables me to understand them.
Prayer for today: Thank you, Holy Spirit, for giving me understanding that I would never know by trying to understand God with my mind.

FEB 12