ABIDE IN CHRIST
The Lord will send his faithful love by day; his song will be with me in the night—a prayer to the God of my life. (Psalm 42:8)
Choosing the word abide for my #oneword2023 easily led to selecting a second word, savor. When we abide in Christ, we can savor His unconditional love. I used Rhymezone to find synonyms for abiding and savor. Some of them were quite interesting.
ABIDING
Synonyms: lasting, enduring, permanent, imperishable, deepening, obeying, adhering
SAVOR
Synonyms: relish, taste, enjoy, cherish, relax, embrace, celebrate
As I ponder those synonyms and relate them to abiding in Christ, I see it as a lasting relationship with Him. This imperishable connection deepens as we cling to Christ and obey His commands. As we grow closer to Him through reading the Bible, praying, and meditating on His word, we learn about His unconditional love. He loved us before we even knew about Him.
But God proves his own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. How much more then, since we have now been justified by his blood, will we be saved through him from wrath. For if, while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, then how much more, having been reconciled, will we be saved by his life. Romans 5:8-10
When we think about the sacrifice Jesus made for us, we understand a bit of His unconditional love. He knew there was no way for us to come up to Him. So, He came down to us, lived a sinless life, died a cruel death, then rose triumphantly from the grave. Besides all that, He promised never to leave us, to give us strength and peace, and provide for our needs.
Author of our faith
Bore our sins upon the cross
Intercedes for us.
Deemed clean by Him, now we have
Everlasting life
SAVOR CHRIST’S UNCONDITIONAL LOVE
We taste and see that the Lord is good (Psalm 34:8) as we abide in Him. Knowing He loves us unconditionally, we can cherish this relationship, relaxing in His embrace. I know that we don’t literally feel God’s arms around us. It’s experiencing the peace that He gives when we put our trust in Him and spend time studying His word and praying.
When we meditate on God’s word, letting it simmer, our minds are renewed, and our relationship with Him grows deeper. He is our refuge, our strength, our Savior and Lord.
The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer, my God, my rock where I seek refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. (Psalm 18:2)
Sing and praise the Lord
All I have I owe to Him
Very God, He is
Over all, He reigns as King,
Righteous and holy
What about you? How have you experienced God’s unconditional love?
I’m linking up with: #Grace&Truth, #InspireMeMonday, #oneword2023Marchlinkup
Gayl, I love your thoughts here, and the richness of those two words! I have been pondering “abiding” lately and you have given me food for thought!
Thank you, Donna! Yes, those words are rich, and I hope to learn more about what they can mean in my life with Christ. Glad to have given you food for thought. 🙂 Blessings to you!
Hi Gayl … there’s something so magical about the snowflakes drifting down over that beautiful ABIDE snapshot. As we abide in Him, He gives us peace and hope and a Christ-honoring perspective. I’m grateful …
Thanks, Linda! Yes, I love how the snowflakes drift along, but it’s about time to take them off as spring approaches. However, we are getting some colder weather for the next few days. So, we’ll see. I’m glad you like the ABIDE photo. Yes, He gives us true peace and sure hope. Yes, I am so grateful, too. Blessings to you!
I loved the Acronym ABIDE. And yes I have experienced God’s unconditional love. He looks beyond our faults and weaknesses and still loves us. Thank you for sharing with us.
Thank you, Ufuoma! Yes, He knows we are weak but loves us and gives us strength. Blessings to you! xo
Beautiful dear Gayl! It’s so amazing to me how poetry helps bring expression to the thoughts in our hearts. God’s gift of language really is such a grace for us. Thank you dear Gayl for helping us see more of God’s beauty!
Thank you, Bettie! Yes, I love how poetry works. Thank you for being such an encouragement to me, dear Bettie. Blessings! xoxo
Gayl, I love this message. I like what you did with the acronyms.
Visiting today from G&T
Thanks so much, Paula! Blessings to you!
Great acrostics, Gayl!
Thanks, Lisa! Blessings to you!
Clinging to Christ – it reminds me of my two-year-old grandson who wants to cling to His mother or even his grandpa for whatever reason – and he knows how welcome he is in their arms – and how possessive he is about abiding and savoring that placement. I love word play – what meaningful, fun acrostics!
Maryleigh, such a good illustration of your grandson in the arms of the adults he loves and feels safe. That’s how we abide in God! Glad you enjoyed the acrostics. Thanks for your encouraging comment. Blessings to you!
Aw, this is beautiful. An excellent reminder that abiding in Christ and savoring His love bring us joy and contentment because Christ is enough. What a privilege to know Him.
I love that sleeping puppy right there.
Thank you so much, Lux! Yes, Christ is enough, and it is a privilege to know Him. Blessings to you!
Wonderful post, Gayl. Your collage makes it all the more personal and real. Nice job!
Thank you, MItzy, for your encouragement! I appreciate it. Blessings to you!
That’s a nice acronym for “Abide” and “Savor.” I enjoyed dipping into those concepts a little deeper with you.
Thank you, Barbara! I’m glad you enjoyed exploring these concepts a little more. Blessings to you!
I love the poems with your words about God’s unconditional love. I need to try that with my word, too, but I lack the natural skills for it that you have, Gayl. 🙂 Beautiful!
Thank you, Lisa. I hope you try it. You could use just one word for each letter or a few words. It might be easier than you think. 🙂 Blessings to you! xo
Great acronyms for ABIDE and SAVOR. I need to savor more as I abide. Loved you collage.