Hearts at Rest in His Presence

“Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with action and in truth. This is how we know that we belong to the truth and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence whenever our hearts condemn us. For God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything.” 1 John 3: 18-20 (NIV) 

“. . . let us not love with words or tongue. . .”

As children of God, we are to show our love in practical ways. When we know someone is hurting, we are to put feet to our prayers. In the writing craft, there is a rule that a writer is to “show, not tell” We need to show our love to our fellow man, not talk about how we love Jesus.

“. . . but with action and in truth.”

We are commanded to love one another. If we choose to love all those around us, we are to demonstrate that we do by helping another person.

“ . . how we know that we belong to the truth. . .”

When I was a child I heard people say ‘how do you know.’ As an adult, I have heard ‘ and you know that, how.” When we give our hearts to Jesus and ask Him to rule our lives, we become children of the truth.

“. . . we set our hearts at rest in his presence . . .”

When we enter into God’s presence, we see Him on His throne. We begin to let go of any anxiety or fear we might have in our hearts. We can do this because God loves us.

“ . . whenever our hearts condemn us.”

Because we are human, we have times of doubt and discouragement. But if we turn our hands palms upward and ask God to take over the issue we face. He will step in and work on the particulars.

“For God is greater than our hearts. . .”

God is bigger than everything-The giant Redwood trees, Niagara Falls, and the Grand Canyon.  Yet God protects the smallest child. He makes the fragile rose petals. He loves us and wants to comfort us. We should learn to yield to Him and allow Him tend to our hurts and attend to our hearts.

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graphic: freeimageslive.co.uk.