"There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear." I John 4:18 NIV

"God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him," John explains. Love--God's pure and perfect love--sets us free. Where we might have been intimidated by someone smarter or prettier, God sets us free to love. Where we might have been resentful toward someone who has hurt or betrayed us, God sets us free to love. Where we might have been fearful to let down our walls, God gives us freedom to risk loving anyway.

God's love for us is deep, sure, and unwavering. John states that the reason there is no fear in love is "because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love." When we accept Jesus as our savior, our sins are wiped away forever by the sacrifice of blood that he made on the cross. Jesus already took our punishment. We are now sheltered in the arms of love forever. We may know consequences or correction, but the final punishment has been spared us.

If we have experienced this powerful love of God, it should set us free to love others in the same way that we are loved. With loving comes risk. Not everyone deserves our love; not everyone will reciprocate our love; not everyone will appreciate our love. We are free to love anyway, and to love without fear--with wisdom and discernment, certainly, but not with fear.

"Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love."

"For great is your love, reaching to the heavens; your faithfulness reaches to the skies." Psalm 57:10 NIV

When David wrote these words, there were no high-powered telescopes or satellites to send back pictures from space. There was simply a vast canopy covering the earth, a mysterious open space that made the ceiling of the world. The sky wore many faces: blue on a sunny day, with puffy white clouds flitting past; gray and dismal when rain threatened; dark at night, sometimes with a sprinkling of stars or the pale illumination of a silver moon. Even more vast and unknown than the sea, the sky was the greatest concept the psalmist could fathom.

He used this metaphor to illustrate the incredible, immeasurable depth of God's love for us. And not only his love, but his faithfulness. When God makes a promise, we can count on him to keep it. When he promises that his love never fails, that his forgiveness has no limits, and that he will never leave us, we can rest in the assurance of these truths. He blesses us beyond what we deserve, is faithful to us even when we fail and deny him.

How often do we take the time to meditate on the marvelous scope of God's faithfulness and love? How often do we stop long enough to sing his praises, to thank him with hearts full of gratitude? When the demands of our schedule consume our energy, or when the stresses of uncertain times burden us, we need to remember God's faithfulness and be comforted and strengthened.

"Jesus replied, 'If anyone loves me, he will obey my teachings. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.'" John 14:23 NIV

Last week I wrote rather glibly about living every day as an act of worship. But the idea stayed with me. I began to ponder what it means to live a life of worship, and if I'm successfully living it. It's one of those concepts that sound so churchy we have difficulty connecting with it.

Jesus made it clear that if we say we love him, our lives should reflect it through obedience to his teachings. Our songs on Sunday morning are nice. Our prayers at Bible Study are nice, too. But God wants to see our love expressed to him in the everyday moments of obedience. There are many teachings of Christ that are difficult to emulate consistently: love your neighbor as yourself; love your enemies and pray for them; don't worry.

As I examine my own life, I am convicted of my selfishness, impatience, and anxious thoughts. Do I honor God with my life when I lay awake at night worrying? When I spend great amounts of time in prayer for my own life and loved ones and neglect the concerns and cares of the people around me? When my attitude does not reflect a calm and peaceful heart? The answer is obvious.

Lord, forgive me for how I fail you each day. Fill me with your Spirit and help my love for you to overflow into every area of my life. Help me to daily express love, patience, and trust, and to bring glory to you with my life.

"For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." Ephesians 2:10 NIV

Despite the misery of fall allergies, I can't help but be enthralled by the beauty of the season. The flawless blue sky constrasted against the golden and russet leaves bathed in the glow of warm sunshine; the rustling sound as the wind moves through the leaves and then casts them swirling to the ground; they seem to me as unique expressions of God's creative handiwork. Each season has its own peculiar beauty, but none captures my imagination like autumn.

As I gaze out at the vivid colors and brilliant sunshine, I think of the love that God has invested into his creation. He could have made the planet merely functional, given it only the requirements necessary to sustain life. But he took it beyond that and made it full of mystery, majesty and beauty.

Then he placed humankind on it and instructed us to care for and enjoy this work of God's own hands. We were the crowning achievement of his creation. What a humbling realization that God himself invested the same lavish love and thought into you and me.

We are his workmanship, created not just to fill space and mark time, but to accomplish God's purposes through the gift of this life he has given us. We were placed on this planet, not to amass wealth and material success, but to live meaningful lives that reflect the love of God. Each day we spend breathing should be an act of worship, giving glory to the Creator who gave us breath.