I will study your commandments and reflect on your ways. I will delight in your decrees and not forget your word. Psalm 119:15–16 (NLT) My earliest childhood memories are of my parents doing daily devotions with me and my brothers. From a young age, my parents taught us the value of spending time with God.  However, I have run into many believers who aren’t sure what devotions are or why they’re valuable. So let’s take a look at what they are and why we do them. Devotions are simply spending time alone with God every day. It’s setting aside time in your day to pray, read His Word and talk with Him. The fantastic benefit of doing devotions is that you personally learn, grow and …

We love Him because He first loved us. 1 John 4:19 (NKJV) Truth is of no use unless it is communicated with love. If someone who hates you criticizes your work, you will become defensive and likely won’t listen to what they have to say. But if a good friend takes you aside and talks to you about something you are doing, even though it pains them to do so, you listen.  This is why it’s so destructive when spiritual teachers make people feel like God is out to get them. This doesn’t empower anyone to change—it only destroys their self-worth and ruins their relationship with God. It’s when you discover how much God loves you that you are empowered to change and grow.  If …

Love never fails. 1 Corinthians 13:8 (AMP) Some think of love only in terms of its expressions. For example, physical touch is an expression of love, but it is not love in itself. In fact, touch can be devoid of love and can bring pain.  So, what is real love?  God defines love in 1 Corinthians 13:4–8, but we also know that God Himself is love (1 John 4:8). If God is love and He has given us a description of what love is, then there are many things we can learn about God’s characteristics from the description He gives us in this chapter.  First of all, God endures long and is patient and kind. He is never envious and He doesn’t boil over with …

“For God so greatly loved and dearly prized the world that He [even] gave up His only begotten (unique) Son, so that whoever believes in (trusts in, clings to, relies on) Him shall not perish (come to destruction, be lost) but have eternal (everlasting) life.” John 3:16 (AMPC) The single most important need of a human being is to experience love, especially God’s love.  Do you believe God loves you?  According to John 3:16, God’s motivation for sending Jesus to this Earth was love. It wasn’t pity or impatience. He loved us even when we were in our most broken, rebellious state, and He still loves you this way today.  If you picture God as a big, mean judge in the sky who allows children …

You were told that your foolish desires will destroy you and that you must give up your old way of life with all its bad habits. Let the Spirit change your way of thinking and make you into a new person. You were created to be like God, and so you must please him and be truly holy. Ephesians 4:22–24 (CEV) The way you live out your life is tied to how you see yourself, how you see God and what you believe about love. If you’re not experiencing love in the amount or kind you desire, you’ll likely be able to trace the problem back to your beliefs regarding one of those three areas. First, let’s cover what you believe about yourself.  Most people …