 |
| Joy in finding that true relationship. |
Of course they are in love, weren’t most of us at that age?
There’s nothing like a first love. Everything is exciting; even rainy days are
followed by beautiful rainbows. The
world is seen through colored glasses and pointing to new adventures, with
the one you know you will spend your life with forever.
I am sure that Michael and Gina felt the same way with
their marriage, only that’s not how it began.
A turn in life’s journey led them to where they are today.
Welcome new friends this week from:
See if your city/state/country made the list.
New on DFB – Guam;
Belgium; Kranj, Bohinj, Slovenia; Ludlow& Burgess Hill, England, UK; Maria
Ellend, Niederosterreich, Austria; Benalmadena, Andalucia, & Toledo,
Castilla-LaMancha, Spain; Sevstopol, Ukraine; Kathmandu & Jhapa, Nepal;
Quezon City & Catubig, Northern Samar, Philippines; Santiago, Region
Metropolitan, Chile; Lagos, Nigeria; Regesnburg, Bayern, Germany; Dhi Qar, Al
Muthanna, Iraq; Doha, Ad Dawhah, Qatar; Frankfurt, Hessen, Germany;
Yokosuka-shi, Kanagawa, Japan.
USA – Willow
Springs, MO; Cary, NC; Margate City, Mantua, Harrison, Dumont, NJ; Philadelphia & Jim
Thorpe, PA; Eucha, OK; Lomita, CA,
Opelika, AL, Dahlgren & Harrisonburg, VA; Chester, MD; Chattanooga, TN;
Muskegon & Spring Lake, MI; Charleston, AR; Muskogee, OK; Minneapolis, MN.
If I left anyone out please let me know.
Thank you for your continued support and sharing this Outer Journey on
Daily Favor. (DFB - Daily Favor Blog)
Read updates on Hubby’s Heart
Attack.
You are welcome to leave comments or prayer requests below. All are private. I would love to hear from
you and how Daily Favor has worked in your life. Contact me by leaving a message in the box at
the bottom of this week’s post.
Don't miss
out on this week's challenge (below).
First,
but Not the Last
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| Matt & boys |
Gina was a vibrant, highly spirited Italian girl who fell
in love with her college sweetheart Matt.
They married and began to build a family when something happened.
Her “first love” was diagnosed with cancer
that eventually took his life on Christmas Day 2005, leaving her a widow at the
young age of 36.
A very strange thing happened the day of Matt’s
funeral. His childhood neighbor Cathy
came to the service and spoke to Gina, a woman she never met before that day.
 |
| Cathy |
Six weeks later Cathy would join her friend in heaven succumbing
to a fast-growing brain tumor, making her husband Michael a widower with three
kids of their own.
The lives of two families would be profoundly changed as
each traveled the grief road that would bring them together for this part of
their journey.
Gina believed that if
they didn’t find a way to let God transform this tragedy into something good
they would miss out on His ultimate plan and purpose.
A
Vessel He Could Use
Even though Gina lost what she believed was the love of
her life, God was able to minister to her in the way she lived her life before
others. She allowed herself to be the
vessel God could use, and in turn the Lord brought people into her life that
would uplift and encourage her family through difficult times. Michael and his grieving family would be a
part of that “new thing” God was doing in their lives.
When Cathy left this earth it wasn’t something Michael’s
family expected. After all, she wasn’t
sick for years like Matt. Although it
was painful, Gina had time to prepare to some degree. Michael didn’t handle the situation in the
same manner as a God fearing servant, and in fact he had no answers at all.
It was Gina, the church, family and friends that helped
Michael get back on track so he could continue his journey. Only this time it would be with someone new.
Four
Shall Become One
Two years passed when the grieving families
would become a blended one. Gina
describes their new journey as one of “Imperfect people trying to love the Lord
and others.”
 |
| Michael & Gina |
As he has grown closer to God, Michael’s invitation
for us is to be mindful of each opportunity we have with family and
friends. Find a way to be servant minded
and learn more about Jesus.
In their search for God’s perfect will, Michael and Gina
never forgot that Matt and Cathy were the reason this all came about in the
first place. Their marriage embraces those
they have lost and they allow the Lord to use their story to bring others to
Him.
Gaining
Joy for the Journey
 |
| Michael and Gina Spehn |
This isn’t a lesson or even a story about finding true
love and your soul mate here on earth after heartbreak.
What was the key factor to Gina and Michael’s
new life together and being able to establish a ministry? When their sole mate (the only loved one) was
no longer here on earth, they remembered they had a soul mate, Jesus Christ.
God was able to take what the devil meant for harm and
turn it into good. They each returned to
their first love, Jesus who is first before anything or anyone else on
earth.
Gina describes it as the walk with God in her
faith journey that set her on the path for greater things. He turned her mourning and weeping into joy
for the rest of her assignment.
Is Someone
Against You?
When we accept Jesus into our hearts as our Savior, He
becomes our first love in our new life as a believer. He gently takes us by the hand and leads us
into new destinations.
We look to Him
for guidance, are excited to read the Word of God, can’t wait to share what
we’ve learned with others … it’s like our first real romance.
Everything changes when we receive Christ, and our
anticipation of each new revelation only heightens our relationship with the
Lord.
Somewhere along our journey life takes over, and before
we know it Jesus is no longer the first person we turn to when things go
wrong. He is often the one we blame.
“…Nevertheless, I have this against you, that you have left your
first love.” (Revelation 2:4 NKJV)
By returning to our first love, which is God, He can turn
the most tragic situations into something pretty amazing and for His
glory. He promises that He will bring a
new thing into our lives, if we put Him first.
“We love Him, because He first loved us.” God has always put us first in his heart over everything
else. We matter to Him.
What I want you to take away from this isn’t the pain and
suffering of two families, but the joy that God brought to help them through
the valley.
When God becomes our first love, He changes the way we
love and the way others love us. He
bestows grace, mercy and favor in abundance when we return to our relationship
with Him.
So that’s where I want to take us for this week’s
challenge – back to our first love.
Remember
When …
Try to remember those feelings you had when you saw the
“one” that changed your life forever.
The one thing that stood out for me was my husband’s beautiful eyes and
long lashes. He still has lashes every
girl wishes she had.
 |
| Read the Story Behind the Book |
I couldn’t wait to tell him the events of my day and
holding his strong hand made me feel so loved.
If he were in a crowd of people I could pick him out by his walk or the
sound of his voice.
Things that make him
happy are easy, because they are mainly related to food or animals (besides me
naturally).
All these little bits of information let me know that he
is important and first in my life. It’s
the same with the Lord.
God has
attributes and characteristics also, and if He really were our first love, we
would know them.
This
Week’s Challenge:
Returning to Our First
Love
Just as you know your loved one here on earth inside and
out, this week we’re going to be specific in what we learn about God.
When we really know God, we can describe Him
and learn to live like Jesus.
Living a life pleasing to the Lord is something that
others can see. It’s measurable, a term
we have learned for this part of our outward journey for Christ.
Here are a few questions we need to find answers to that
will help us return to our First Love through salvation.
1 - What do you know about God’s eyes?
2 - Describe God’s hands.
3 - Do you look forward to talking/listening to the Lord?
4 - How do you recognize God in a situation?
5 - List some things that make God happy?
Think about this, everything you desire to know about a
person you love should be something you already know about God. Rediscover your first love as a believer in
your journey back to God.
Find out about the God that loved you before you were born. (Jeremiah 1:5 NKJV)
The more you learn about Him, the more you’ll see that He
has favored you all along.
"Because you loved me first Jesus, you will always be my
first l♥ve!"
Until next time, favor your First Love,
Jesus.
“Return to me, I’ll always love you.”
– Jesus Christ
What's New this Week: Two Selections
Return to Your First Love:
A Journey Back to God
by Teresa Jones
(I receive no compensation for
promoting these books for charity.)
How Two Families Found Faith, Hope and Love
in the Midst of Tragedy
by Michael and Gina Spehn
Maybe you don’t know the Living God that I
know, but would like to have this kind of favor in your life also. Click on the above tab “Tell Me” for more
information on becoming a child of the Savior.
Content and Image Copyright from Favored1. Do not copy. A.N.A. logo by
J.C.Penney, Inc.
Scripture reference was
taken from the New King James Bible Version provide by Gateway
BibleImage credit: Google Images or Dreamstime Creative Common License if not specified.
Image: Couple Hands/Heart Book First Love
Disclaimer Notes: Results may vary due to lack of belief.