Love made perfect

President Franklin Delano Roosevelt once said in a speech to the American people during one of the darkest days in this country's history —

 The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.

We are living in some dark days in America and the world right now. Where are the bold, calming and optimistic voices of reason? Where are the voices of elected leaders on the issues that concern us all? 

In many ways, the silence has only added to the fear—fear of outsiders, fear of terrorists, fear of each other. Fear has replaced reason. 

Fear is causing some people to act or react in ways that they might not otherwise if fear where not a factor in their decisions. And, too often the consequences have proven deadly. Innocent lives destroyed, lives torn apart all because of someone else's fear. "Nameless, unreasoning, unjustified fear," as Roosevelt noted, has a paralyzing effect that blocks any effort to find a solution. But how can we conquer fear?

The only thing that can conquer fear is love. And the only way to know love, in its purest form, is to know God.

But if we say we love God and don’t love each other, we are liars. We cannot see God. So how can we love God, if we don’t love the people we can see?The commandment that God has given us is: “Love God and love each other!"1 John 4: 20-21

 God is love. To find out more about God, click on this link, peacewithgod

What to do when your life needs rebuilding

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Learn to appreciate what God has given you

Enter His gates with thanksgiving And His courts with praise Give thanks to Him, bless His name. - Psalm 100:4

I remember when I was just about eight years old sitting down to dinner at my Grandmother's house. The table was set with her special Devon Cottage dinner plates with their distinctive blue floral pattern. As Grandma stood stirring pots on the stove, I remember being really hungry that day and couldn't wait to get a taste of her home cooking. While she was still at the stove, Grandma called out to me: "Carolyn, say the grace." Something we did before every meal in her house. Looking down at my empty plate and then,  back at my grandmother, I responded, "But Grandma, there's no food on the plate?" My youthful observation made Grandma laugh, but I learned a lesson that day that you don't always have to see God's blessings to be thankful for them. Even though no food was on the plate, I knew I would eat that day, and that in itself was reason to be thankful.

Nowadays, people take so much for granted. For a nation that has been so enormously blessed by God, America is moving toward a society that feels God no longer has a place in its national life. Whole towns and communities have gone so far as to outlaw public mention of God or any expression of Christian traditions and symbols. We're fast becoming an ungrateful nation.

And what about you? How thankful are you for what God has given you? Perhaps you're living in the lap of luxury with no need of anything. You can thank God for blessing you with wealth. Even if you're facing an empty plate right now, you can be thankful for having a plate— trusting God to supply the food. The scriptures tells us that the Lord "will never leave us or forsake us" (Hebrews 13:5). Years ago, I was an eight year old kid saying grace over an empty plate, and from that day to this, I have never gone hungry or had to wonder where my next meal was coming from.

God's faithfulness extends to every aspect of the believer's life because he cares that much for us. As a matter of fact, And not only that God's blessings extend to those who don't believe. Learn to appreciate what God has given you. You can depend on God to always keep His promises.