The Greatest Commandment

If love is free, then why is it so hard to give? If love is so necessary, then why do we struggle to show it?

During our study of Crazy Love, we are being challenged with questions such as these, but not just in the pages of the book. We are experiencing it in our lives. We are being challenged by unkind co-workers, family members that have hurt us in the past, friendships that have created unfair accusations and relationships that have produced disappointments; sometimes, we even struggle with loving ourselves.

For me, I know that a topic is necessary when not only life produces opportunities to practice the topic, but also when the Holy Spirit presses upon the heart of our ministers to expound even further on the topic. God is moving and flowing in our Bible study and He has allowed situations of life to show up in our midst, to challenge us to not just discuss truth, but to practice and live it out!

Yesterday, apart of the sermon that I received in church expounded on the woman with the alabaster box (Luke 7:47). In these verses of scripture, Jesus exclaims that in order to love much, we must understand how tremendously we have been forgiven. "A person who has been forgiven little shows only a little love". In other words, Love reflects forgiveness. If I feel as if I'm not "that bad", or if I dwell on always being a victim... if I feel as if I've done nothing wrong, if I cannot see past my own circumstances and not accept the reality that ALL HAVE SINNED, then it is difficult for me to show compassion and mercy on others. How can I love those who are imperfect if I do not identify myself with imperfection? Jesus explains that this is not possible.

As Believers in Christ, we must understand that all sin requires forgiveness and that forgiveness is the ultimate act of love. Jesus forgave my sin because of His great love for me, I must forgive others because of my great love for Christ. In his book, Francis Chan goes to explain that loving people can be very difficult, because it goes against our human nature, so we must pray that God equips us with Love for others.

In the Gospels, Jesus declares that the greatest commandment is to Love God with all that we have and all that we are, and then to Love others. Why is this the greatest commandment? It's because is the most difficult and most selfless act of obedience. Loving God and loving others is the most powerful act of dying to self. As Children of God, we must extend great love to others because God has extended such great love to us. This goes hand in hand... when I love God, I can love others, When I love others, I am loving God. If this were easy, it wouldn't be the greatest commandment. But thank God we have a helper... the Holy Spirit, who gives us the strength that we need to accomplish all things, for the glory of God, through His son, Christ Jesus!

Go out and love, my sisters!
~Pearls

Crazy Love

Last Tuesday, Pearls of Hope turned the last page of Crazy Love and we are so excited to have completed our THIRD BIBLE STUDY together!!! The evening was filled with heartfelt discussion, vulnerable truths and a reminder that change is so necessary in order to become effective in our relationships with the Lord. We learned so much about our own hearts, how God wants to develop us and how we have a tremendous opportunity to share Christ with the world around us!

This study, for me personally, was a journey full of conviction concerning how to love the unloveable, how to operate in grace and compassion in the midst of conflict and unfair treatment, how to look for opportunities to give and to serve, and most importantly, I learned the significance of Matthew 25: To Love God means to love others, and in order to Love others, I must develop a sincerely intimate and reverent Love for God.

I praise the Lord for His word of truth, for His grace and mercy that He shares with us continuously, and of the loving sisters and friends that He has put in my life! This study, in particular, was a challenge for us all. It was difficult at times; uncomfortable, even, yet they all stayed the course! There were areas in our lives that needed to change, there were short comings that needed to be addressed, there were struggles that needed to be confessed, and as we tackled our problems, we were able to mature together- growing in friendship and in accountability. Together, we grew in God's love and in personal maturity within our Christianity. We prayed, confessed, encouraged each other and created opportunities to love and serve.

These are some amazing women! They are courageous and not afraid to be transparent  and reach out! I am so grateful to be connected to such women and I know that my life is the better for it! This experience was truly life changing!!! I'm so thankful for my Pearls and I cannot wait to begin our next study in September!!!

Stay Tuned for more!
Keep Growing, Keep Changing for Christ!

~Pearls of Hope

Join the Movement!

We are currently in the process of creating our YouTube page! (Stay Tuned for that!!!) This morning, I was looking/surfing around for similar organizations such as ours (Pearls of Hope) and I came across this video that was just amazing! It really touched my heart and it confirmed a lot of love lessons that we've been learning throughout our study of Crazy Love! Maybe you've seen this video, maybe you haven't. But as you watch it, consider your own heart and any way that you can focus more on loving others- not based on their behavior, their differences or their beliefs- just simply and purely loving others, like Jesus!

Crazy Love, by Francis Chan

This week in our study, we are focusing on chapter three in "Crazy Love", by Francis Chan. I'm so excited for all of our ladies and for all the truths that we will learn. This study takes a personal view within our own hearts regarding how we are following the greatest commandment: Love God, Love Others.

Jesus said in Matthew 22: 36-40 that the greatest commandment is to“‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind'. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." This seems easy, but the circumstances of life combined with our inherent disposition of being selfish creatures by nature, can be our greatest hindrance in obeying this truth from Christ. Sure, it's easy to dismiss our own faults and rely on an eternally loving God to forgive us of our sins, but what about us bestowing that same grace towards others who are just as faulty as we are? There is where the problem lies and there is where the challenge arises.

We are so excited to partake in this spiritual adventure! We know that with God's help and Chan's advice, we will learn, practice and grow in loving God and loving others- always being prayerful that our lives are being a bright witness for Christ! I hope you all will let the Lord do the same within you!

Enjoy the Journey!
~Pearls

Back At It!

After an ENTIRE MONTH off, we came back together last night for the introduction to our new Bible Study: Crazy Love, by Francis Chan!

Everyone seemed so excited to begin and the consensus declared that this study would be an intense look into our own hearts regarding our need (and sometimes lack) to love others, as God loves them. Honestly speaking, this can be a challenge, even for the strongest of us- to love, when it's not fair. But this is the call of Christ for every Believer and this will be the focus of our new study for the next 11 weeks.

 

 Loving God Means Loving Others!!!

I'm so excited to re-connect with all the girls for this new lesson, and I'm so happy, as well, for our new addition to the group! WELCOME NIYA!!!

Stay tuned for more updates from us!