BVOV Magazine 2013 - present

prepared for the time for opportunities to come. Kind: The best thing you can do for God is to be kind to His kids! You can't love the Father and not love His children. Acts of kindness and love communicate happiness to those around us. Not Envious: Love prefers others, is not competitive but is generous. In any line of work, there will be others who are better and it is a temptation to push others down in order to get ahead. But love will help others to be their best, preferring them fi rst. Humble: Jesus did not seek His own honor, but allowed God to honor Him. When you do a kind deed, humility is quiet, not bringing attention to itself. Courteous: Love does the mannerly thing. Anyone, no matter the level of their education or culture, will be gracious when they walk in love. Love speaks the truth gently. Unselfi sh: It is not grasping but generous, knowing it is more blessed to give than to receive. It is not stingy, but ready to share, given to hospitality. Not Easily Provoked: Love does not have a bad temper. Great talents and infl uence can be completely destroyed in one fi t of anger. There are sins of the body and sins of the disposition. For example, the sin of the prodigal son's older brother was greater because he was ungrateful for his father's constant provision and jealous of his brother's honor. Guileless and Sincere: Love does not fi nd satisfaction in the shortcomings of others and it does not spread an evil report. It aggressively advertises the good in people; it defends and holds other people up, credits them with good intentions, and is not suspicious. It never gives up on people, but a† rms and encourages them. How To Walk In God's Kind of Love When you see how much God loves you, you can forgive yourself and you can also forgive others. By doing this, you release yourself and others from past hurts, sins and disappointments. Unforgiveness can open the door to sickness and the thief, who comes to steal, kill and destroy. Be quick to repent, quick to forgive and quick to believe! The next thing is to keep looking into the perfect law of liberty. James 1:25 (New Living Translation) says, "But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don't forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it." Renew your mind and feed your faith by meditating on this topic. This involves a† rming it out loud and also using your imagination to see yourself, others and situations you're facing in the light of God's love. The third exercise to strengthen your love walk is to pray in the spirit: "But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost, keep yourselves in the love of God" (Jude 20-21). This spiritual exercise involves yielding the most unruly member of our body to the Holy Spirit, who makes us holy. Romans 5:5 says, "…the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us." He is the Greater One who will help you tame your tongue, which is like a wild animal that cannot be domesticated! The tongue must be continually yielded to the power of the Holy Spirit, who gives us power to overcome. The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 14:1, The Message: "Go after a life of love as if your life depended on it—because it does." In the AMPC it reads, "Eagerly pursue and seek to acquire [this] love [make it¡ your aim, your great quest]." In other words, we're told to make God's love our quest. A quest is a lifelong dream, or anything that dominates your life and holds your attention for at least 20 years. We should decide to walk in love whether anybody else does or not. It is not a waste of time and is a necessity to inspect our love walk on a continual basis, so the power that raised Jesus from the dead may fl ow unhindered! Faith works by love, and when we make it our quest, we will see the worst people and situations turn around, favor, promotion, and heaven on earth 2 0 : B V O V Mark Hankins—After 50 years of pastoral and traveling ministry, Mark and his wife, Trina, are now ministering full time in camp meetings, leadership conferences, and church services across the United States and around the world. For more information on Mark Hankins Ministries, go online to markhankins.org. i Watch Mark Hankins on C H A N N E L Mark Hankins on C H A N N E L Mon.- Fri. 2:30 a.m. | 6 p.m. ET Watch

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