Breaking Out of the Box

Fear is such a killer of life. It holds us down. Stymies our growth, keeps us immature. But love changes things. Fear sets boundaries, it says we can't do something but love breaks us out of the limitations. Love grows us, develops us into something bigger and causes our faith to arise.

Faith works by love - Galatians 5:6

Faith gets activated when we start loving people. When we put them first. When we become a servant. Love is an action word. It serves, it forgives, it helps, it takes action and makes a difference. How big is your love for people? That's something we need to ask ourselves every day. Look at how you love people and then you can truthfully gauge your level of faith. How big is your love? That's how big your faith is. When I am short with people it's because my love is small. When I am easily offended It's because my love is set on myself. But when I choose to push through my limitations and do what is right versus doing what is easy, that's when I demonstrate a living faith. A faith that touches the heart of God. A faith that breaks us out of the box. Nothing can keep us down when we love like God. The body can even be killed yet your love will live on. No box can keep you.

Living Big

And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him. Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world. 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. (1Jn 4:16-18 KJV)

Jesus taught us how to live big. How to break out of the box. How to beat this thing that limits us. He taught us that love was the greatest thing we have going for us. We have this ability because we were made to love people. Perfect love or perfected love is grown up love, it's the kind we see that Jesus demonstrated.

Fear is our enemy, it limits us, causes selfishness and causes us to live small. But fear can be beaten. It can be demolished and overthrown. That's why we got to keep growing in the love of God. Perfect love, perfected love, grown up love expels fear. When love grows up it looks like the kind of love Jesus showed. He loved the unlovely, forgave those who were in the very act of killing Him. He demonstrated a depth, He lived big. He showed us a way to live that releases power to overcome that which keeps us small. He stepped out in love, He took a chance. He gave His life away for others. That's our leader and if we want to live big, if we want to make a difference, we will have to follow Him in this example.

Edwin Louis Cole, one of my heroes in the faith, who lived his life as a champion for Christian Men all over the world used to say, "Love desires to benefit others even at the expense of self because love desires to give. Lust desires to benefit self at the expense of others, because lust desires to get." Then, love is about others.

If it's always about us that's perverted love. That's the kind of love the world lives. Always about self, and others find themselves at the bottom. That looks a lot like lust doesn't it?

But again, this perfect love casts out fear. When we live like Jesus, we live in God's love and demonstrate what love really is. Putting others first. Intentionally taking up the role of a servant and living for the benefit of others. That's living big. When we live big, we let God live through us. Fear has no control, lust has no control, sin has no control. Wow, what freedom. When we stand in judgment, which every man will one day we can stand with boldness that our life was sown for others. That God lived through us. That's living big.

Just imagine what this kind of living can bring us into. Well, that's another story.