Being an Inspiration

I sometimes find it difficult to live like Christ, I mean truly living out a sacrificial and joyful type of life. We stay so busy, as most Americas do, that it's hard to find the strength and tenderness to put God first by loving Him and loving others. John 14:5; 21:15-17 & Luke 10:27 We love Him and others by obeying and feeding His Sheep. (Jesus describes us as lambs, because He sees us as immature and vulnerable and in need of continual caring, tending and feeding). So, sometimes when we feel we don't have enough strength and love to be quite like Jesus, we have the desire to give up. That is, until someone comes along that is closer to being like Christ than anyone you've ever seen. When you see a fellow Christian digging deep and relying on God to equip and strengthen them, then it encourages and inspires me to go back to the source (Gods Spirit within me) and allow Him to work through me to accomplish His Will for me. Hebrews 13:21 & Isaiah 40:31. I say all of this because I have a dear brother in Christ, a leader in our church, who is that continual inspiration for me. Last night I wasn't feeling well and had a hard time pushing myself to teach the teen girls at church and when I got there, I saw him limping a little and holding the wall as he walked down the hall. So I asked him if he was okay and he said, of course with a smile on his face, that his legs were feeling week that day and needed to hold the wall to stay standing. You see, he has been battling cancer for a while now and even during chemo, high fevers and extreme fatigue he has always put his Sheep (church family along with lost souls) first and shows up to serve with a full heart, a smile on his face, and encouragement on his lips. He inspires me to stop focusing on myself and whining, and instead find joy and strength in God and ALL that He has done for me and through me. It gives me renewed strength and courage to press on through the storms of life and put my eyes on Him, the anchor for my soul, instead of on myself. Hebrews 6:19 He is the full meaning of living out Philippians 4:13 "For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength." We love you Ed!

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