Just very recently, my wife and daughter (Michele and Juliana) made it into our local paper. They are the ones in the second picture.
Aren't they adorable!!!
As important as my relationships are with them, I always need to remember that God is more important to me than they are. I am thankful and constantly need to be reminded that I am married to my wife because of God and I am a father because of Him.
In the Catholic Church, marriage is a sacrament. If you asked most Catholics, they probably wouldn't know what that means. I know it's easy for me to forget at times. Some may talk about the wedding or the honeymoon but it's more than that.
God has a love for me that knows no ends. He knows me better than my wife, my daughter, my mother, or my father. He knows every hair on my head and He wants me to better understand my love for Him and His love for me. Which is why marriage and family are so important. Through my wife and daughter, I have a much better understanding of God's love for me. Through the intimacies, the joy, sorrow, and the pains, I learn about His love every day. Every day my daughter looks into my eyes with unconditional love that words can't express, I learn that I need to learn to love God that way....and sometimes it's difficult.
In my previous post, I mentioned that placing God in the center of your life is a decision that needs to be made on a daily basis. Some of my Protestant brothers would probably disagree with this as they may believe that once saved always saved. That all we need to do is accept Jesus Christ as our Savior and we are saved.
I believe it takes more. Saying otherwise would be like me telling my wife that I love her on our wedding day and then feel that I don't need to put forth any effort into the marriage after that. She would be very angry. A marriage takes work as any married person should know. And our relationship with God is so much more important than our marriage.
4 comments:
Isn't it great that when we are born again we are made alive by His Spirit. We now can love the Lord for it says He has given us a new heart. Not by works lest any man should boast but by grace.
We are now not only free to obey Jesus but we willingly do it for His love consumes us. All glory to Jesus for his complete work in Justifying the Sinner Romans 8:30
I definitely feel alive by His Spirit. The grace of God has touched my heart (and I believe yours too...I have read some of your blogs and can tell you're searching.)
Hi Dennis.
I viewed the paper article for Michele and Juliana. Wouldn't they let you squeeze into the picture? Maybe you can post a nice family portrait.
"God has a love for me that knows no ends."
Yes. Astounding.
It's not about you and it's not about me. As you say, He has that same care for Michele and Juliana and me. It is not so much that God is more important to you than they are, but because of God, we are all equally important. So we are all one.
Well, at least we can keep trying :)
Too bad about the Lions this year.
Dennis,
Good post. I'm a Protestant and I tend to think of salvation as more of a process as well. As I read the Bible, I notice a tension between the already and not yet. In one sense, we are already saved, but in another sense, we are being saved. So I kinda see where you're coming from.
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