"Love Personified" But Made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men” (Phil. 2:7). Have you ever thought about God’s first expression as He entered this earth in man’s likeness? He cried. You may be thinking, well of course He cried. He was a babe being born, and lively healthy babies do cry upon stimulation and taking their first breath out of the womb. I believe it goes a little deeper. I believe He cried as normal babies do, but when He emptied Himself from Heaven in His Son Jesus Christ, and came to live among us, it was indeed the cry of His Heart to redeem us. He cried because He knew the separation of man kind from Himself. And yet He knew every person that would be redeemed by His Son’s Coming, and by way of His Son’s death on the cross. Jesus was God in flesh and lived among us. His first expression was, He cried. We do not typically think upon God as crying, nor do we think about Him, the Creator and Sustainer of the entire Universe as a servant. He spoke galaxies into existence yet he serves us. This is Love personified. The Apostle Paul records it well in Philippians chapter 2. Paul exhorts us that our attitude should be the same as Christ Jesus. Christians are to have His attitude of self – sacrificing humility and love for others. People that are separated from God ought to have a direct effect upon The sons and daughters of God. The reality of their plight without Christ should provoke a response in us. We also should cry. However, by Faith and Prayer and being love personified in and through us to them, see them through the eyes of faith as coming into Christ. We are to reflect God’s Glory. We are to express God’s cries for lost humanity. In general, our world witnesses more actions of giving and serving during the Christmas season than any other time of the year. This is noteworthy, but the Mind of Christ is not a seasonal display. The Mind of Christ is not the baby in the manger in finality, but the resurrected Son of God who died a brutal death on the cross for our redemption. The attitude that Paul wrote about is on going every season. It is a life style of dying to ourselves daily so The Glory of God can be personified in and through us. Love is patient in an un-patient world. Love is kind in an un-kind world. Love does not envy in an envious world. Love is not boastful in a boastful world. Love is not rude in a rude world. Love is not self seeking in a self seeking world. Love is not easily angered in an angry world. Love keeps no record of wrongs in a record of wrongs keeping world. Love does not delight in evil in a delight of evil world. Love does nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit but in humility consider others better than itself. Love does not look to its own interest, but also to the interest of others. Loves attitude is the same as that of Christ Jesus. At the beginning of 2006, we inquired of the Lord and His goals for His ministry at Shiloh. He directed us toward one word, Love. He was letting us know that in all we did for the year to embrace it all with “LOVE”.  We can do a lot of activity and look all polished on the outside, but without Love we will not accomplish any Glory for Him. Every work we do as Christians will be judged, and if Love is absent it will be to no avail. Love reflects God’s Glory. How are you measuring in Love? 2006 will be coming to an end soon. Will you finish strong? Will you have been LOVE PERSONIFIED in 2006? Our destiny is to be like Christ. Christ’s self emptying is the supreme example of humility. To have the “Mind of Christ”, we must deliberately humble ourselves by becoming other- directed, first to God and then to others. We are in a position to build the Kingdom when we humble ourselves. It is all about redemption, but it never happens without Love and humility. What do we take with us after this side of eternity is over? Souls will be our only asset when we meet The Lord face to face. Not money, nor power, prestige, titles, or possessions, but souls. What is the cost of a soul? God placed a high price tag on a soul. Because of Christ’s humility, He was able to obey radically. If we are humble, we can obey as Christ did. His example should be our goal. God’s goal is the completion of our sanctification and the perfection of our Love. The greatest gift is Christ personified which is Love personified.   “And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God” (Philippians 1:9-11). Debbie Fondren