Journal Entry ~ 09/03/19

37 "Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven; 38 give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you." - Luke 6:37-38

I have always loved these words - good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. They’ve always brought me such encouragement. When we are obedient, God’s blessings are abundant. He gives back to us significantly more than we give to Him. 

While those words can be applied to any obedience in our lives, this passage is specifically referring to our relationship with others. The way we love and treat others will be given back to us. When we choose not judge or condemn, when we choose to forgive and give, when we choose to love how He calls us to love, even when it’s hard - that will be given back to us. But not just given back to us, there will be as much good measure as possible that can be crammed into the cup. So much good measure will be given to us that it will be running over. And it isn't something we will even need to work at going to get - it will be placed in our laps for us. 

I have lived long enough as a Christian to know this is true - still struggle to always live it out because my sinful heart can take over in the moment, but each time I have made a conscious choice to not judge, to forgive someone, to love when it’s difficult, or to sacrificially give of my time or resources, I have been blessed immensely. 

A word of caution: we should never give because we expect the return to be better. God knows our heart. We give because we want to grow more and more like Him. But, when we are selfless and put others before our own needs, God returns that blessing to us in unimaginable ways. 


Press on ~ you are loved 💗

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