Author: Shaunelius Sterns

I have been married to my wonderful husband for 21 years now. I am a Christian, poet, singer, songwriter, and artist. I have five beautiful children. I enjoy writing and reading my Bible. I also love to pray for others. I love nature and being outside on sunny days. I love spending time with my family and watching shows that makes me laugh.

Our Daily Bread: Greater Love

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April 16 | Bible in a Year: 1 Samuel 30–31; Luke 13:23–35
Greater Love

Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. John 15:13

READ John 15:9–17

LISTEN ONLINE
Just days before Holy Week, when Christians around the world remember Jesus’ sacrifice and celebrate His resurrection, a terrorist stormed into a supermarket in southwest France opening fire and killing two. After negotiation, the terrorist released all but one hostage, whom he turned into a human shield. Knowing the danger, police officer Arnaud Beltrame did the unthinkable: he volunteered to take the woman’s place. The perpetrator released her, but in the ensuing scuffle Beltrame was injured and later died.

A minister who knew the police officer attributed his heroism to his faith in Jesus, pointing to His words in John 15:13: “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” Those were the words Christ spoke to His disciples after their last meal together. He told His friends to “Love each other as I have loved you” (v. 12) and that the greatest love is to lay down one’s life for another (v. 13). This is exactly what Jesus did the next day, when He went to the cross to save us from our sin—as only He could.

We may never be called to follow the heroism of this officer. But as we remain in God’s love, we can serve others sacrificially, laying down our own plans and desires as we seek to share the story of His great love.

By Amy Boucher Pye
REFLECT & PRAY
How do you react to stories such as that of Arnaud Beltrame? How can you serve someone sacrificially today?

Dear Jesus, You died to give me life everlasting. May I live with gratitude for this gift and share it with those You put in my path.

SCRIPTURE INSIGHT

Two important themes in John 15 are remaining in Jesus and friendship with Jesus. Twice, Christ instructs us to “remain in [His] love” (vv. 9–10)—to continue in a personal, enduring, and endearing intimate relationship with Him. To remain in Jesus’ love is to “remain faithful to [His] teachings” (8:31 nlt) and obey His commands (15:10).

Jesus contrasted servants and friends (v. 15) to show the new level of intimacy that believers now have with Him. He proved this friendship by laying down His life for us (v. 13). Because Abraham was privileged to be called a “friend” of God (2 Chronicles 20:7; James 2:23), God revealed His plans to him (Genesis 18:17). He also spoke to Moses “as one speaks to a friend” (Exodus 33:11). Jesus likewise tells us “everything that [He] learned from [His] Father” (John 15:15) because we are His friends.

K. T. Sim

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“Follow Your Heart: Encouragement”

Hey, join me at “La Brea S Books And” on the Spaces by Wix app to read “Follow Your Heart: Encouragement” and more posts on the go.
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“Eating Healthy and Staying in Shape”

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“Promises, Promises: Poetry for the Mature Mind”

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Food Opinions: Where Everyone’s Opinion Matters

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Self-Confidence

Describe something you learned in high school.

In high school, there are so many things that teenagers go through. Bullying, peer pressure, pubity the choice whether to have sex, or not to have sex, cliques, (groups), whether you’re popular or not. Those are some of the things that are still happening today.

Honestly, things haven’t changed much since then. Those things still exist. They exist at work, church, home, and everywhere. There’s no escaping it.When I was going to school, I never let anyone influence me to do bad things. I never let anyone pressure me to do something bad. I always avoided things that could get me into trouble.

Children nowadays don’t think about what they do or say, but when things at school starts to be unbearable, they become pressured about what someone says about them. Sometimes, they turn to drugs. It causes depression, and anxiety, which could cause someone to do the unthinkable to themselves.

SELF CONFIDENCE

Self confidence is something that we have to help us remember that we can be confident in knowing that we can be confident in doing what’s right. We don’t have to worry about what others say. We don’t have to give in to their tactics, or their bullying so they can make themselves feel bigger than what they are. People who treats others like that are already small.

Having self confidence mean something. It means holding your head up high even when you have been put down. It means having faith in doing what’s right no matter what. It means getting back up when you’ve been knocked down more than once.

I learned self confidence in high school. I learned how to stand up for myself. I learned how to face a bully, I avoided peer pressure. I stayed away from gangs, I did everything I could to protect myself from that kind of thing. I always knew that if I gave in to those types of things, they could lead me down the wrong road in life.

Having self confidence is a beautiful thing. It doesn’t make you weak, it doesn’t make you a goody two shoes, it only makes you smart, and wise. It shows that you care about what you want in life. It shows wisdom, and it can’t ever be taken from you.

Always encourage yourself and others. Again, having self confidence is a beautiful thing.

Until next time, and as always, thank you for joining me on my journey with Food for the Soul.

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Love- A Word Study

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Genesis: Chapter 2:1-25

The Seventh Day, God Rests
1 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. 2 And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. 3 So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.
The Creation of Man and Woman

4 These are the generations
of the heavens and the earth when they were created,
in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens.

5 When no bush of the field a was yet in the land b and no small plant of the field had yet sprung up—for the Lord God had not caused it to rain on the land, and there was no man to work the ground, 6 and a mist c was going up from the land and was watering the whole face of the ground— 7 then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature. 8 And the Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there he put the man whom he had formed. 9 And out of the ground the Lord God made to spring up every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
10 A river flowed out of Eden to water the garden, and there it divided and became four rivers. 11 The name of the first is the Pishon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold. 12 And the gold of that land is good; bdellium and onyx stone are there. 13 The name of the second river is the Gihon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Cush. 14 And the name of the third river is the Tigris, which flows east of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.
15 The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. 16 And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, 17 but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat d of it you shall surely die.”
18 Then the Lord God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for e him.” 19 Now out of the ground the Lord God had formed f every beast of the field and every bird of the heavens and brought them to the man to see what he would call them. And whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name. 20 The man gave names to all livestock and to the birds of the heavens and to every beast of the field. But for Adam g there was not found a helper fit for him. 21 So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. 22 And the rib that the Lord God had taken from the man he made h into a woman and brought her to the man. 23 Then the man said,

“This at last is bone of my bones
and flesh of my flesh;
she shall be called Woman,
because she was taken out of Man.” i

24 Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. 25 And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed.

The Holy Bible, English Standard Version ©2001 Crossway Bibles, a publishin

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Trust in the Lord

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Click on the link above to enjoy this 8-Day Bible Plan when you download the Daily Devotion app on your mobile device. It’s really relaxing. God bless you.

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Day-1. Devotional: I Am a Gift

I Am a Gift!

Hello, world!

I’m a gift from above.

I already know that I am loved.

Devotion

When you were born, your skin and hair and eyes were beautiful! But you know what the most important thing about you was—and still is? You are loved. Before you could stand up or say a word or draw a picture, you were loved! You are a very special gift from God. Nothing you do or don’t do will ever change that. What a wonderful thing to think about!

Prayer

Dear God, thank You for loving me, right from the beginning! I like to think of how excited You were to give me as a gift to my family. I love You too! Amen.

Activity

Ask a grown-up for wrapping paper, an empty box, ribbons, tape, and kid scissors. Wrap up a hug or a kiss or the sound of your laughter for someone you love. When they open the box (it might look empty to them!), show them what is inside!

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