Category: Compelled by love

2 Timothy 1:6-7 NIV – For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline.

The timidity or fear factor that Apostle Paul addresses here for Timothy is not consistent with the power and reality of God’s perfect love already poured out in his heart through the Holy Spirit. So, in the same way for us – in these moments of “fanning” into flame God’s gift of the Holy Spirit, we are making a conscious turn from the sinful hindrances or limitations that we allow of the old self – like fear or timidity. And we come back in surrender to fully depend on the Holy Spirit’s empowering where the old self is gone, “I no longer live” and the new has come, “Christ lives in me” (Gal. 2:20). In this humble desperation, we are asking of the Holy Spirit to fill us once again – to be filled with the “Niagara Falls” pouring of his love that is already there.

And like Apostle Paul encourages the Ephesians church to “keep on” being filled with the Spirit (Eph. 5:19), it is the same here, where we need to “keep on” fanning into flame. The flame in our hearts for the Lord needs to be continually tended to – by how we “keep on” fanning into flame.

Let’s make the most of every opportunity we have in seeking the Spirit’s filling together whether in our church worship and prayer times or in our missional group or campus meetings.

Let’s seek the Lord in worship with “Fire Fall,” by Planet Shakers (Click here).

Prayer: Father, as we surrender our hearts to you once again, would you fan our hearts into flame? May our hearts burn with greater love and passion for you and may it overflow in “fearless” love for others. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

– EK

John 14:12 CEB – I assure you that whoever believes in me will do the works that I do. They will do even greater works than these because I am going to the Father.

Romans 15:18-19 NLT – Yet I dare not boast about anything except what Christ has done through me, bringing the Gentiles to God by my message and by the way I worked among them. They were convinced by the power of miraculous signs and wonders and by the power of God’s Spirit. In this way, I have fully presented the Good News of Christ from Jerusalem all the way to Illyricum.

“The result of Jesus’ miracles wasn’t simply that people were awed. They were loved…Time and again we are told that Jesus was motivated by compassion. Lame beggars, sinful women, people who were hungry and poor, people who were frightened and alone, and people who were trapped and desperate all met the Glory of God. Their lives were transformed because they found him to be full of goodness, mercy and compassion. They encountered a power that revealed the love of God and were changed forever.” [Mike Pilavachi and Andy Croft, Everyday Supernatural: Living a Spirit-Led Life without Being Weird, p.14]

Our Lord Jesus invited us to participate in his powerful ministry to love others through the Holy Spirit’s empowering. May the Good News of Christ be fresh in our hearts each day – moving us with passion for others to be brought to God.

Let’s take a moment to pray for those in our lives who need to encounter the power of God’s love through the Good News of Christ.

Let’s worship to this song, “Mighty to Save,” by Hillsong (Click here.)

Prayer: Thank you Father for the Good News of Christ! May I solely depend on the work of your Spirit’s powerful love to bring salvation to those I am praying for. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

– EK

Galatians 2:20 NLT – My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

Romans 8:10 NLT – And Christ lives within you, so even though your body will die because of sin, the Spirit gives you life because you have been made right with God.

“If we told you the spirit of Lionel Messi had come to live inside of you, you would be right to expect a dramatic increase in your football skills. If the Spirit of God is inside us, shouldn’t we expect to be different?” [Mike Pilavachi and Andy Croft, Everyday Supernatural: Living a Spirit-Led Life without Being Weird, p. 32]

For our basketball fans – how about if you had the spirit of Lebron James? For our tennis fans – how about if you had the spirit of Serena Williams or Nadal? Just by mentioning these athletes’ names – there is that instant association with power and greatness and yes, absolutely – you would expect a dramatic increase in your game.

But we have the Spirit of Christ living inside of us! We have resurrection power living inside of us! So, let’s expect dramatic transformation and extraordinary empowering – to live victorious, whole and healed lives and to love others in the supernatural love of Christ.

Prayer: Father, thank you for your Holy Spirit that I can live a transformed life that is set apart for you and to love those around me. Fill me with supernatural faith to expect the extraordinary empowering of your Holy Spirit. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Let’s close in worship to the song, “Build My Life,” by Housefires (Click here.)

– EK

2 Corinthians 5:14-15 NIV – For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.

“Our lives must be living incarnations of the love of Christ Jesus if we will ever have an effective ministry. What is our motivation for ministry? The Lord is looking for servant lovers—people who are passionate and filled with love for Him, people who desire and are longing for the Bridegroom’s return, people who can already taste the feast and know it’s about to begin. These people can no longer stand to stay in their comfort zones.”
[Baker, Heidi, Compelled by Love: How to Change the World Through the Simple Power of Love in Action, pp.30-31]

God’s love so fills us that we have no choice but to respond in love for God and in love for others. And his love takes us so beyond ourselves and our comfort zones to see and to love others in Christ.

Let’s worship to this song, “Fill This Place”, by Red Rocks (Click here) and as we do, let’s seek to be so filled with the Lord’s presence and love once again.

Prayer: Father, let me be so caught up in your love that it takes me out of myself and my comfort zones to love those around me. Help me to see, to pray for and to love that one person today. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

– EK

1 John 4:9-10 NIRV – Here is how God showed his love among us. He sent his one and only Son into the world. He sent him so we could receive life through him. Here is what love is. It is not that we loved God. It is that he loved us and sent his Son to give his life to pay for our sins.

Let’s worship to this song, “Singing Over Us”, by Worship Central, remembering and soaking in God’s love that he is singing over us (Click here).

As we continue to respond to God’s love, let’s remember our calling statement together:
We the Agapé Mission Church are called to be a worshipping body of believers who desire to conform to the image of Jesus Christ as we respond to his unfailing love. As we are being transformed by the Word of God, and as the Holy Spirit empowers all to minister, we seek to build discipleship relationships and practice the unconditional love of God. We are called and committed to share the Good News to all.

Prayer: Thank you Father for the love you have shown us in Christ. Help us to daily respond in faithfulness to how you have called us. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

– EK