Category: Acceptance

Categories
Acceptance Love Sacrifice

Greatest Love

“But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8 (ESV) Have you ever questioned your own value and worth? That’s a normal part of life. Everyone wants to feel valued and valuable. God established your value by taking the initiative to rescue you from your sin and to robe you in His righteousness. God has made His righteousness known through His Word and the Word made flesh (John 1:14). When you place your faith in the completed work of Jesus on the cross, you receive the righteousness of Christ. The truth is that we have all sinned and fall short of God’s glory. We have missed the mark of His perfection and His holiness. Yet, God chose to justify us freely by His grace through the redemption that came through Jesus. God took the initiative to demonstrate His selfless and sacrificial love. Before you turned to God, God turned to you! Your value is measured by the price He paid to remove your sin and to robe you in His righteousness. You are valued and you are valuable to God. His love for you is the certification of your value. God is the greatest lover. He loves unconditionally, personally, and eternally. God is love and His love never fails. There is nothing you can do to cause God to love you more and there is nothing you can do to cause God to love you less. God’s love for you is perfect. What will you do with the love God has shown you? Have you expressed your appreciation to God for the love He has lavished on you? Share the gift of His love with others. Following Jesus Every Day, Stephen Trammell

Categories
Acceptance Discipline Jesus

Accept His Acceptance

“And God, who knows the heart, bore witness to them, by giving them the Holy Spirit just as he did to us.” Acts 15:8 (ESV) Have you accepted God’s acceptance of you? That’s step number two in order to PACE yourself for the day. Remember, you start your day off by lifting your hands toward heaven and saying, “Lord, I praise you.” Then as you keep your hands lifted you turn the palm of your hands toward each other and say, “I accept Your acceptance of me.” How did God demonstrate His acceptance of the Gentiles in the book of Acts? He demonstrated His acceptance by allowing the Holy Spirit to take up residence in them. God indwelt them by His Holy Spirit. He took the initiative through the shed blood of Jesus to make them fit for His habitation. God demonstrated His acceptance of us by saving us and enabling us to become the walking tabernacle of His presence (1 Cor. 6:19-20). Who made us acceptable? Jesus! What should our response be to His acceptance of us? Accepting others! “Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God.” (Romans 15:7 ESV). If you have a difficult time accepting someone, think for a moment about Jesus’ acceptance of you. As you accept others you are extending to them what you have received from Jesus. Let’s practice: Lift of your hands and say, “Lord, I praise You.” Now turn your uplifted hands toward each other and say, “I accept Your acceptance of me.” Now live in fullness everyday by accepting His acceptance of you. There’s nothing you can do to cause Jesus to love you more and there’s nothing you can do to cause Him to love you less. Jesus accepts you! Drawing Near, Stephen Trammell Lead Pastor Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell

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Acceptance Forgiveness Jesus

Yielded Interactions

“Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God.” Romans 15:7 (NIV) Have you been wounded by someone recently? What is your natural reaction? You probably want to wound them for wounding you. But is it possible to look at the person behind the behavior? What if you sought to place yourself in their skin to seek to understand why they would act in a hurtful way? Maybe they are deeply hurting. Maybe they are searching for something to anesthetize their pain. You cannot control how they treat you. However, you can control how you respond to their treatment of you. When you react, it is you reacting. When you respond, it is the Holy Spirit living in you expressing His nature and character through you. Jesus is the ultimate pattern for us to model our lives after. He exemplified how to respond to difficult people. “When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly” (1 Pet. 2:23 NIV). Rather than retaliating, Jesus entrusted Himself to the Judge who is all-knowing and all-seeing. God doesn’t miss even a fragment of an interaction that you have with others. Entrust yourself to His care. He knows what you are dealing with. By the way, He created the person who has wounded you. In fact, God even gave them His best by allowing Jesus to die on the cross for them also. Accepting others will not come naturally. Accepting others, especially difficult people, comes supernaturally as you surrender your life completely to the Lordship of Christ. Allow Him to be Lord of your life and your interactions with people who may potentially hurt you. Jesus specializes in pain management. Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Lead Pastor Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell

Categories
Acceptance Christ Family

Family and Acceptance

“Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God.” Romans 15:7 (NIV) What kind of home environment did you grow up in? Was your home a safe place where love was extended unconditionally and where acceptance was granted freely? Do you recall if your home was filled with an atmosphere of trust? We exist as a family to love each other unconditionally in an atmosphere of acceptance and trust. What about now? What’s your home life like? Have you nurtured an atmosphere of acceptance? When you accept God’s acceptance of you, every relationship takes on a new dimension. Drawing from what God has done in your life, you will be able to extend acceptance of others. When you accept others, it does not mean that you condone their behavior or affirm inappropriate conduct. Rather, you are demonstrating that your acceptance of them is not based upon performance. “Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.” Col 3:12-14 (NIV) Clothe yourself with the garment of God’s love and acceptance. Treat your family members the way God has so graciously treated you. God has already given us so much more than we deserve. God simply wants us to let His life flow through us to influence our home for His glory! Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Executive Pastor Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell

Categories
Acceptance Romans Sacrificial Love

I Am Accepted

“For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering.And so he condemned sin in sinful man, in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit.” Rom 8:3-4 (NIV) What fallen mankind could not do under the Old Covenant, God did under the New Covenant through Jesus. God did for us that which we could not do for ourselves. Jesus became the substitutionary atonement for our sin. Our sin has been forgiven and our unrighteousness has been replaced with the righteousness of Christ. Reality #3: In Christ, I am accepted. “For this reason he had to be made like his brothers in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people.” Heb 2:17 (NIV) “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” 2 Cor 5:21 (NIV) “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed.” 1 Peter 2:24 (NIV) In Christ, you are accepted. There is nothing you can do to cause God to love you more and there is nothing you can do to cause God to love you any less. God accepts you completely, not based on your human effort, but based on the completed work of Jesus on the cross. Have you accepted God’s acceptance of you? Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Executive Pastor Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell

Categories
Acceptance Forgiveness Jesus

Yielded Interactions

“Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God.” Romans 15:7 (NIV) Have you been wounded by someone recently? What is your natural reaction? You probably want to wound them for wounding you. But is it possible to look at the person behind the behavior? What if you sought to place yourself in their skin to seek to understand why they would act in a hurtful way? Maybe they are deeply hurting. Maybe they are searching for something to anesthetize their pain. You cannot control how they treat you. However, you can control how you respond to their treatment of you. When you react, it is you reacting. When you respond, it is the Holy Spirit living in you expressing His nature and character through you. Jesus is the ultimate pattern for us to model our lives after. He exemplified how to respond to difficult people. “When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly” (1 Peter 2:23 NIV). Rather than retaliating, Jesus entrusted Himself to the Judge who is all-knowing and all-seeing. God doesn’t miss even a fragment of an interaction that you have with others. Entrust yourself to His care. He knows what you are dealing with. By the way, He created the person who has wounded you. In fact, God even gave them His best by allowing Jesus to die on the cross for them also. Accepting others will not come naturally. Accepting others, especially difficult people, comes supernaturally as you surrender your life completely to the Lordship of Christ. Allow Him to be Lord of your life and your interactions with people who may potentially hurt you. Jesus specializes in pain management. Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Executive Pastor Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell

Categories
Acceptance Christ Family

Family and Acceptance

“Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God.” Romans 15:7 (NIV) What kind of home environment did you grow up in? Was your home a safe place where love was extended unconditionally and where acceptance was granted freely? Do you recall if your home was filled with an atmosphere of trust? We exist as a family to love each other unconditionally in an atmosphere of acceptance and trust. What about now? What’s your home life like? Have you nurtured an atmosphere of acceptance? When you accept God’s acceptance of you, every relationship takes on a new dimension. Drawing from what God has done in your life, you will be able to extend acceptance of others. When you accept others, it does not mean that you condone their behavior or affirm inappropriate conduct. Rather, you are demonstrating that your acceptance of them is not based upon performance. “Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.” Col 3:12-14 (NIV) Clothe yourself with the garment of God’s love and acceptance. Treat your family members the way God has so graciously treated you. God has already given us so much more than we deserve. God simply wants us to let His life flow through us to influence our home for His glory! Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Executive Pastor Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell

Categories
Acceptance Romans Sacrificial Love

I Am Accepted

“For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in sinful man, in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit.” Rom 8:3-4 (NIV) What fallen mankind could not do under the Old Covenant, God did under the New Covenant through Jesus. God did for us that which we could not do for ourselves. Jesus became the substitutionary atonement for our sin. Our sin has been forgiven and our unrighteousness has been replaced with the righteousness of Christ. Reality #3: In Christ, I am accepted. “For this reason he had to be made like his brothers in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people.” Heb 2:17 (NIV) “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” 2 Cor 5:21 (NIV) “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed.” 1 Peter 2:24 (NIV) In Christ, you are accepted. There is nothing you can do to cause God to love you more and there is nothing you can do to cause God to love you any less. God accepts you completely, not based on your human effort, but based on the completed work of Jesus on the cross. Have you accepted God’s acceptance of you? Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Executive Pastor Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell

Categories
Acceptance Discipline Jesus

Accept His Acceptance

“God, who knows the heart, showed that he accepted them by giving the Holy Spirit to them, just as he did to us.” Acts 15:8 (NIV) Have you accepted God’s acceptance of you? That’s step number two in order to PACE yourself for the day. Remember, you start your day off by lifting your hands toward heaven and saying, “Lord, I praise you.” Then as you keep your hands lifted you turn the palm of your hands toward each other and say, “I accept Your acceptance of me.” How did God demonstrate His acceptance of the Gentiles in the book of Acts? He demonstrated His acceptance by allowing the Holy Spirit to take up residence in them. God indwelt them by His Holy Spirit. He took the initiative through the shed blood of Jesus to make them fit for His habitation. God demonstrated His acceptance of us by saving us and enabling us to become the walking tabernacle of His presence (1 Cor 6:19-20). Who made us acceptable? Jesus! What should our response be to His acceptance of us? Accepting others! “Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God” (Romans 15:7 NIV). If you have a difficult time accepting someone, think for a moment about Jesus’ acceptance of you. As you accept others you are extending to them what you have received from Jesus. Let’s practice: Lift of your hands and say, “Lord, I praise You.” Now turn your uplifted hands toward each other and say, “I accept Your acceptance of me.” Now live in fullness everyday by accepting His acceptance of you. There’s nothing you can do to cause Jesus to love you more and there’s nothing you can do to cause Him to love you less. Jesus accepts you! Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Executive Pastor Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell

Categories
Acceptance Love

Giving Thanks for the Best Thing

(Today’s Devotional Submitted by Guest Writer: Adam Watson, Associate Pastor of Worship Ministries, Champion Forest Baptist Church) “This is how God showed His love among us: He sent His one and only Son into the world that we might live through Him.  This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.” 1 John 4:9-10 (NIV) Have you ever had a day where it feels like nothing you do is right, and everyone is upset with you? Those are the days where it’s hard to have a good perspective on thankfulness. I was having one of those days recently and came to the point of deciding the rest of my day didn’t have to be plagued by self-pity. I made the hard decision to turn my focus away from myself and turn it toward God. When I foolishly felt like there was nothing to be thankful for, God reminded me to look back at the top of the list. The best thing to be thankful for always remains true:  God loves me, and not just a little bit. He loved me enough to go out of his way to have a relationship with me. God created us to be in relationship with Him, and when we mess up, He pursues us still. He loved me enough to sacrifice Himself to remove the sin barrier between us. He loved me when I didn’t love Him. This truth is foundational for living as a Christian. How long has it been since you thanked God for loving you? Do you ever feel like God’s love for you is dependent on your circumstances? Go back to the top of the list and remember God loves you unconditionally. Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Executive Pastor Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell

Categories
Acceptance Faith Spiritual Blessing

Accepting His Acceptance

“…to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.” Eph 1:6 (NIV) How do you respond to rejection? Do you allow the rejection to inject you with insecurity or do you challenge the rejection? Rejection is painful. We long for acceptance. The wonderful news is that in Christ, you are accepted. God has accepted you on the basis of His redeeming love for you. Remember, in Christ, you are a saint, you are blessed, you are chosen, you are adopted, and you are accepted. Have you accepted God’s acceptance of you? He took the initiative to demonstrate His acceptance of you by freely giving you His grace in Jesus. Do you measure up to His standard of righteousness? No! However, God declared you righteous when you accepted the atoning work of Jesus on the cross. When rejection surfaces, combat the lies with the truth of God’s acceptance of you. Your peace in this life will be proportionate to your acceptance of God’s acceptance of you. Your acceptance of God’s acceptance of you will give you lasting peace and eternal security. Some people may reject you. At times, people may misunderstand you. However, you can respond to rejection by living in light of your acceptance of God’s acceptance of you. “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8 NIV). Your acceptance has permanence! Choose to accept God’s acceptance of you. Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Executive Pastor

Categories
Acceptance Legalism Loyalty Rejection

Enduring Rejection

“He then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again.” Mark 8:31 (NIV) Rejection hurts. Have you been there? When you don’t feel that you measure up to a standard that has been established or an expectation that has been articulated, rejection seeps in. You begin to experience pain, discontentment, and insecurity.  During those times when you are misunderstood rejection begins to shadow your vision and stifle your optimism. Jesus lived in the midst of steep legalism in His day. The elders, chief priests, and teachers of the law sought to shackle others by their self imposed rules and regulations. They promoted religion by works which embodied excessive “do’s and don’ts” that totally bypassed intimacy with our Heavenly Father. The suffering of Jesus included rejection. He was not accepted by those who claimed to be religious. Rejection was perpetual during His three and a half year public ministry. His being rejected ultimately led to His being crucified. When you compare your current bouts with rejection to that of Jesus, it seems as though your encounters with rejection are light. Yet, they are real and they are painful. Rejection hits us hard and tends to knock the wind out of us. What kind of rejection are you currently facing? How long has the rejection lingered? There is good news on the way that will give you a whole new perspective on  how to respond to rejection. Spend some time sharing your hurt with Jesus in prayer. Let Him hear you express your pain as you call out His Name. Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Executive Pastor

Categories
Acceptance

Acceptance

“God, who knows the heart, showed that he accepted them by giving the Holy Spirit to them, just as he did to us.” Acts 15:8 (NIV) Have you accepted God’s acceptance of you? That’s step number two in order to PACE yourself for the day. Remember, you start your day off by lifting your hands toward heaven and saying, “Lord, I praise you.” Then as you keep your hands lifted you turn the palm of your hands toward each other and say, “I accept Your acceptance of me.” How did God demonstrate His acceptance of the Gentiles in the book of Acts? He demonstrated His acceptance by allowing the Holy Spirit to take up residence in them. God indwelt them by His Holy Spirit. He took the initiative through the shed blood of Jesus to make them fit for His habitation. “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body“(1 Cor 6:19-20 NIV). Who made us acceptable? Jesus! What should our response be to His acceptance of us? Accepting others! “Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God”(Romans 15:7 NIV). Let’s practice: Lift of your hands and say, “Lord, I praise You.” Now turn your uplifted hands toward each other and say, “I accept Your acceptance of me.” Now live in fullness everyday by accepting His acceptance of you! Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Pastor of Leadership and Pastoral Care