Loved

One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

Matthew 22: 35-40

It seemed apropos to explore some aspect of love today, even though Valentine's Day has never been a very big deal to me.  Over breakfast I began thinking about what I would post tonight and these verses popped into my mind.  I tried to ignore them at first, but all day long I kept coming back to this single thought: "Love your neighbor as yourself."

It is a pretty radical verse, one that is the epitome of Jesus' teaching.  But a few years ago, I heard it preached in a different way and I wish I could remember the speaker and the event to give them credit, but I can't.  Perhaps more importantly, though, I have looked at this verse, and myself, differently ever since.  The point was that in order to follow Jesus' teaching and love your neighbor as yourself, you have to first love yourself.

Let me let that sink in a bit.

Sometimes the hardest person to love is ourselves, especially for women.  It's easier to focus on our flaws. It's easier to say- "My hair is weird" or "I'm fat" or "Nobody loves me on Valentine's Day" or "I'm a bad wife/sister/mom/friend" or  whatever it is you say to yourself to beat yourself up.

But you are a child of God, a uniquely created being. There will never be another you. God knows the number of hairs on your head and he loves you beyond measure.

"This is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us." 1 John 4:10
"We love because he first loved us." 1 John 4:19

So today, no matter what your relationship status or your feelings toward Valentine's Day, remember that you are loved and remember to love yourself.  If you have that straight in your mind, you are so much better equipped to go and love your neighbors.

What are some ways you show yourself love?  Today, I stopped letting Singles Awareness Day affect my mood by reminding myself of this post I had been pre-composing in my head. It helped me to remember my value and in turn was able to eat a healthy meal at home for dinner as planned, instead of making a rash stop for junk food on the way home. Oh, and I've also been reading over a pretty sweet list written yesterday by my best friend that lists 101 reasons why she loves me.  That's helped too :)

Humility

The word that keeps popping into my mind lately is humility.  It seems like such a strange virtue, one that doesn't come easily or naturally. It takes work, but it is something I believe we can all try to cultivate.

I'm not sure why it keeps coming to mind, except that I don't think I have been the epitome of humility lately.  When I'm busy, I lose patience easier.  People around me irritate me either with their actions, their attitudes or their words.  I am quick to think, "that person is so stupid.," "What's wrong with him?," or "Why would she do that?"

On the surface it seems like I'm just a girl with a hidden mean streak, but really the heart of the issue is humility. This attitude shows that I think I am better than the person at the other end of these thoughts.  I am not. We were all unique creations from the same Creator, and I have my own flaws and make my own mistakes. I often don't hold myself to the same high standard I seem to be looking for in others.  I'm working on trying to remember these things when I get upset.

Humility is also hard to manage at this time in my life because I still get many compliments on how I look or how I've changed.  Honestly, I love these and treasure them in my heart, but I don't want to become dependent on them or train myself to seek them out. I don't want my happiness tied to them. How do I humble myself in the midst of the praise?

And what about the flip side of humility, pride?  Pride is an obvious sin, but is it okay to have some pride in how I look and how far I've come?  If so, where does that line fall?

These questions are more just questions for my self, things I think about, although I would love any thoughts you have on the subject.

In Honor of My New Niece Natalie Grace

For you created my inmost being;
   you knit me together in my mother’s womb.

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
   your works are wonderful,
   I know that full well.

My frame was not hidden from you
   when I was made in the secret place,
   when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.

Your eyes saw my unformed body;
   all the days ordained for me were written in your book
   before one of them came to be.

How precious to me are your thoughts,[a] God!
   How vast is the sum of them!

Were I to count them,
   they would outnumber the grains of sand—
   when I awake, I am still with you.


I am reminded today that our creator does wonderous things when he creates our bodies. It makes me grateful for both my body and the tiny body of Natalie Grace, born yesterday. I pray that my life will be a healthy example for her and can't wait to see the girl she will become.

Myriad Thoughts on Prayer

Prayer is an area of my spiritual life that I have always had trouble with.  I just don't get it sometimes.

Here's What I Don't Get
First, if God is omniscient, then he knows what I'm thinking and feeling. Why do I need to voice it? Is it just for my benefit? I realize I need/want to praise him and thank him as part of my prayers, and I need to repent and ask forgiveness.  But why do I need to ask Him to help my friend find a job or my sister to deliver a healthy baby? Why doesn't he know that I (and he/she)want these things with all of my (and his/her) heart?

Which leads me to my next question, who am I to ask God for anything?  I know the Bible says I am a child of His and an heir to His kingdom, but he is the all-mighty, the creator of everything in the heavens, on the earth and under the sea.  I'm just Jill Stuckey, why do I get to call the shots, petitioning the God of the universe? Except

My other trouble with prayer is that I don't understand why some prayers are answered and some prayers are not.  Does it have to do with the heart of the prayee or does it have to do God's plans?  A lot of the time I try to remind myself that I can't see the whole picture, only God can. Being an inquisitive human though, I'm always trying to figure this one out.

Here's What I Don't Like About Prayer
I don't like that too often it becomes a wishlist of sorts when I do it. I spend way more time asking instead of worshiping. I'd like to spend time praying for everyone in my life daily, but I dislike when my prayers become rote lists of requests.  I don't like when I have told someone that I would pray for them, and then I forget to do it more than once. I don't like that I use the word "pray" as a verb too much. (As in "I pray you will...")

Here's What I Know (and Like) about Prayer
I know that I like praising God. I know that I like praying because I can talk with him like he is a friend. I know that it sometimes brings peace in the middle of a storm. I know that it shouldn't be a just-before-bedtime kind of thing, but something that should be woven into my whole day. I know it's hard for me to pray for myself and my struggles, because I feel so blessed and therefore unable to ask for more. I know that I like it when I'm praying for someone in particular and God leads me to other things to pray for that person or even something else.

Here's Some Things the Bible Tells us about Prayer:
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." Phil 4:6

"Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.Share with God's people who are in need. Practice hospitality." -Romans 12:12

"The prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well." - James 5:15

"The end of all things is near. Therefore be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray." -1Peter 4:7 (We have to exercise self-control to be able to pray?!)

Our prayers are collected in the throne room of heaven and smell sweet to God: "Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints." - Revelation 5:8 (Thanks to Pastor Talbot for this today!)

Wrap-Up
I wonder if I approach prayer too logically?  Is it meant to be something that is understood by your soul, but perhaps not your conscious? I don't know. At any rate, I bet you weren't expecting a discourse on prayer when you visited my blog today.  You may think it doesn't have much to do with my healthy weight-loss journey.  In truth, I do not often pray to God asking him to help me lose weight, even though it's something my heart wants so much.  I'm not sure I'm ready to get into why I don't pray for that (just skimming the surface of thinking about it sounds like a whole other blog post to me.)  However, prayer and Christianity are important parts of my life, affecting every part of my life, so I think it works as a topic for this blog.

Sorry if I tried to cram too much stuff into one post. It's just stuff I've been thinking about for years, but then there was a great sermon on prayer today at church, which stirred it to the surface. Maybe it should've been a series. I'd love your thoughts on any or all of the above. Do you have any favorite verses or lessons from prayer? Please share!