Unconditional Love

I enjoy how Paula White describes unconditional love and "power of the tongue" below.
I hope you enjoy it too.

There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love —1 John 4:18

Are you struggling today with the fact that someone you love doesn't love you? Are you feeling rejected? Are you waiting for someone to come along to "complete" you with his or her love?

Stop waiting or feeling sorry for yourself. Recognize that no other human being can ever complete you. Only God can do that work. One of the most important decisions you will ever make is the decision to accept God's love for you. God does not force you to love Him. He extends His love to you and invites you to receive His love and experience His love. You must choose.

When you know that God loves you with an infinite, unconditional, and unchanging love, you have a security inside you that no person can take way. You have a confidence that is rock solid. You have the kind of self-value and self-esteem that is based on the way God values and esteems you.

Love is incompatible with prejudice and resentment and anger and bitterness and unforgiveness. If you live with constant jealousy and fear, you need to check your "love status." What is it that you are not believing about God's love for you? What hidden motives and desires and attitudes are keeping you from experiencing God's love?

God is love, and if we are filled with God's Spirit, love will flow from us, for the fruit of the Spirit is love (Galatians 5:22). Love will be our automatic response
(1 John 4:16). You cannot love God and hate your brother (vs. 20). When you walk in love, you shut the door to every demonic spirit and influence—whether it is pride, confusion, instability, disunity, strife, contention, anger, pain, hate, bitterness, resentment, or a lack of peace.

Love will allow you to live in a way that looks beyond someone's sin and sees grace (1 Peter 4:8). Love covers a multitude of sins. Love motivates you to stop talking about people and start praying for them. Love doesn't dismiss sin as sin—no, it "covers" sin with understanding, with compassion, with a humble admission that "there, but for the grace of God, go I." If you are going to be loving as Christ loves you, you will say "I'm sorry" a thousand times if you need to, because pride no longer stands in the way.

Find your place in the love of God, and you'll find your place in the hearts of those God puts in your life.

Related Texts: Proverbs 10:12; John 15:9–12; Romans 8:38–39;
1 Corinthians 13:4–8, 13; Ephesians 3:16–19

Power of the Tongue

Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof —Proverbs 18:21

Do you know how powerful your words can be? They can "make or break" your dreams! Your words are containers for power, and by the words you speak you frame your world.

Positive, uplifting, encouraging words will lead to joy and peace and positive results. Negative, depressing, hopeless words tear down and lead to depression and defeat. You can use words to speak life and health and blessing to yourself and to others. By your words, you can soar above the struggles and challenges of your everyday life and ride the winds of blessing and praise. By your words, you form your destiny—what you say within yourself determines the end promise of your life.

The apostle James said that just as the tiny rudder determines the course of the entire ship, your words determine the course of your life (James 3:3–5). Just as a turn of the rudder can make a ship avoid dangerous waters, your words can also grant you safe passage through life if you will use them to speak life and blessing. By the same token, careless or foolish words can be your downfall.

You are going to have to be disciplined and vigilant with your tongue. If you allow the words of the devil or negative people to penetrate your soul, you will lose your battle. There will be times when you want to open your mouth and let loose a whole stream of words that express your anger and frustration or your impressions about someone or something. Don't do it! Do not allow your condition to control your words. Determine that your words are not going to hinder or destroy your destiny.

Use your words as weapons to speak blessing, hope, and peace. Speak faith-filled words from the Word of God. Declare what you have heard from the Lord that He wants to do in your life. Declare what you believe, and it will build your faith. Begin to speak your life as a success, finding purpose and direction under the wings of God's protective hand.

But remember that the power is not in the words but in the source. If your heart is not right with God, you cannot expect to get what you desire and speak. If you are being disobedient to God or refusing to repent over sin, you have no right to sit around spitting out mighty, eloquent faith-filled words and still expect a good result. Powerful words fall to the ground if you are not rightly related to the Lord and walking in obedience.

Related Texts: Joshua 1:8; Psalm 19:14; 119:11, 105; Proverbs 16:23;
Matthew 12:34; Romans 10:8–10; Hebrews 4:12

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