Touches of Tenderness

Thoughts_About_God — Sat, 22 Nov 2025 08:03:51 +0000

My child’s feelings are hurt. I tell her she’s special. My child is injured. I do whatever it takes to make her feel better. My child is afraid. I won’t go to sleep until she is secure.

I’m not a hero. I’m not a superstar. I’m not unusual. I’m a parent. When a child hurts, a parent does what comes naturally. He helps.

Moments of comfort from a parent. As a father, I can tell you they are the sweetest moments in my day. They come naturally. They come willingly. They come joyfully.

If all of that is true, if I know that one of the privileges of fatherhood is to comfort a child, then why am I so reluctant to let my heavenly Father comfort me?

Why do I think he wouldn’t want to hear about my problems? (“They are puny compared to people starving in India.”)

Why do I think he is too busy for me? (“He’s got a whole universe to worry about.”)

Why do I think he’s tired of hearing the same old stuff?

Why do I think he groans when he sees me comDevotionalsing?

Why do I think he consults his list when I ask for forgiveness and asks, “Don’t you think you’re going to the well a few too many times on this one?”

Why do I think I have to speak a holy language around him that I don’t speak with anyone else?

Why don’t I let my Father do for me what I am more than willing to do for my own children?

I’m learning, though. Being a parent is better than a course on theology. Being a father is teaching me that when I am criticized, injured, or afraid, there is a Father who is ready to comfort me. There is a Father who will hold me until I’m better, help me until I can live with the hurt, and who won’t go to sleep when I’m afraid of waking up and seeing the dark.

Ever.

And that’s enough.

by Max Lucado
Used by permission

From: The Applause of Heaven
Copyright 1990 (Thomas Nelson Publisher) Max Lucado
To learn more about Max Lucado visit his website at: https://maxlucado.com/about-max/

How Dearly God Loves Us

Devotionals — Tue, 20 May 2025 07:03:37 +0000

“…we are able to hold our heads high no matter what happens and know that all is well, for we know how dearly God loves us, and we feel this warm love everywhere within us because God has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with His love” Romans 5:5

For years I had often spoken on the subject of love – the greatest privilege and power known to man. But, as in the case of most sermons on love, something was missing.

Then many years ago, in an early hour of the morning, I was awakened from a deep sleep. I knew that God had something to say to me. I felt impressed to get up, open my Bible and kneel to read and pray.

What I discovered during the next two hours has since enriched my life and the lives of tens of thousands of others. I learned how to love. With this discovery, God gave me the command to share this wonderful truth with Christians around the world.

There are five things every person needs to know about love.

1: God loves us with an unconditional love. The love that God has for us is without measure and will continue forever.

2: We are commanded to love. “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment,” (Matthew 22:37,38). We are commanded to love our neighbors as ourselves and we are even to love our enemies.

3: We cannot love in our own strength.

4: We can love with God’s love. It was God’s love that brought us to Christ.

5: We love by faith. Everything about the Christian life is based on faith. We love by faith just as we received Christ by faith, just as we are filled with the Holy Spirit by faith and just as we walk by faith.

In 1 John 5:14,15, we read: “And this is the confidence that we have in Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He heareth us: And if we know that He hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of Him” (KJV)

Bible Reading: Romans 8:14-17

Thought: I will make a list of everyone I do not like. Then, on the basis of God’s command to love all men, I will claim the promise of 1 John 5:14,15 and begin to love others by faith as a way of life.

Question: Which of the five “love truths” that Dr. Bright mentioned resonated most strongly with you?

By Dr. Bill Bright
Used by Permission

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Touches of Tenderness

How Dearly God Loves Us