1 John 4:16 God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God
in him.
This is my all-time favorite verse from the Bible. It was recited on a weekly basis by a priest at the church I went to in Pennsylvania prior to moving here to the Outer Banks in February, 1997. So, I was a bit younger than I am now! I remember the first time I heard it. I liked it so much that my ears were struggling to hear clearly and my brain working in overdrive to try to remember the exact words, as quickly as possible.
My faith as a young child did not teach of a loving God (if it did, I didn’t get that impression), so this was a very huge and new concept to me. This verse just sounds and feels so right. To me, the words of this verse say that if you do good things for others, love one another, help one another, console one another, be there for one another, then you are living in love and have God within your heart and soul. My mom used to always say, “Do as God would do.” As a child, I would think, ”How am I supposed to know what God would do,” or “I am a kid and I don’t know him?”
It is amazing how growing up and experiencing life and its challenges will help you to get to know God if you choose to. I think that the world today really needs love, and maybe if we recited this verse every day or even once a week, it would remind us what my mom used to say. I would just add: “If you love, God is with and within you. You live within Him by acting on that love towards others because actions speak louder than words.”
Sandy Briggman
This is my all-time favorite verse from the Bible. It was recited on a weekly basis by a priest at the church I went to in Pennsylvania prior to moving here to the Outer Banks in February, 1997. So, I was a bit younger than I am now! I remember the first time I heard it. I liked it so much that my ears were struggling to hear clearly and my brain working in overdrive to try to remember the exact words, as quickly as possible.
My faith as a young child did not teach of a loving God (if it did, I didn’t get that impression), so this was a very huge and new concept to me. This verse just sounds and feels so right. To me, the words of this verse say that if you do good things for others, love one another, help one another, console one another, be there for one another, then you are living in love and have God within your heart and soul. My mom used to always say, “Do as God would do.” As a child, I would think, ”How am I supposed to know what God would do,” or “I am a kid and I don’t know him?”
It is amazing how growing up and experiencing life and its challenges will help you to get to know God if you choose to. I think that the world today really needs love, and maybe if we recited this verse every day or even once a week, it would remind us what my mom used to say. I would just add: “If you love, God is with and within you. You live within Him by acting on that love towards others because actions speak louder than words.”
Sandy Briggman
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