Staying In Love, part one

John 13:34; Ephesians 5:21

Westland Baptist Church

Roy Meadows, Senior Pastor

February 14 (Valentine’s Day), 2010

Jesus gives a NEW command.

LOVE one another.

John 13:34 "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.”

Love one another unconditionally.

Here is how Paul says it,

Ephesians 5:21 “SUBMIT to one another out of reverence for Christ. “

Love is a VERB.

Did you know there were better and worse ways to love people? What a strange thing to contemplate. In ancient times there were many descriptives of the types of love – eros, phileo & agape. What’s the difference? Why does it matter? Listen in and find out in this conclusion of "Fireproofing Your Relationships."

Asking someone to forgive us when we are wrong is hard. Giving forgiveness to someone is often even harder. When the pain and emotional hurts of life overwhelm us, it is very hard to forgive. Yet we only hurt ourselves when we let the actions of others run our lives.

This week, Pastor Tim teaches us why we should forgive and some practical steps on how to start the process.

Parasites. They are often unseen and undetected until a serious illness or death. These little creatures attach themselves and feed off the very life of thier human or animal host. Relationships often have parasites working in them and against them: selfishness, addictions, unfaithfulness and sin in general.

Today we explore how to let go of those things that are parasites in your relationships. No, it will not be easy. Yes, it will take time and effort. But all of this will be we worth the great relationship waiting for you!

We no longer value the long-term. It’s just a fact. Whether it is the loyalty of companies to their employees or employees to their company commitment is not longer an "in" thing. This rolls right over into our relationships as well. When something doesn’t work out quite right or go our way, society tells us to move on to bigger and better. But this was not God’s intent for relationships. And it is not healthy.

Today Pastor Roy teaches us from the Word of God about commitment, and not just the short-term kind. We will learn together how to have love for a lifetime. Listen in.