Angela Nazworth
About the Author

Angela Nazworth is a shame-fighting storyteller who writes mostly about the beauty of grace, faith, friendship, vulnerability and community. She is a wife and a mother of two. Angela's also an encourager, a lover of good books, coffee, girl's night out, sunshine, and waterfalls. In the 15 years since she...

(in)side DaySpring: things we love
& you will too!
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(in)side DaySpring:
things we love
& you will too!
Find more at
DaySpring.com
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  1. Angela,
    Yes, indeed, these are difficult times. Unfortunately BOTH political candidates are reflections of society and how it has progressively gone down hill. Their ugliness is a reflection of our society’s ugliness. Just flip through the tv channels and see if you can find anything “pure” and “lovely” to let into your mind. The only One worth reflecting right now is Christ. Now, more than ever, Christians need to rise up – not with ugly chants – but , as you said, with love. Our world needs a third option and that is God and Jesus, His Son. The scripture you quoted says it so well, “The one who does not love does not know God.” We need to pray for those who persecute us and be bold in telling the world why we have the hope that is in us. We need to introduce people to a different way…to go the route of love vs. hate. If we don’t lead the way…who will? Great thought provoking post!
    Blessings,
    Bev xx

    • Bev,

      Bev,
      As a Canadian I fully empathize with what you are all facing. I pray wisdom & love will prevail.

      Blessings to you all,
      I hope you have a good day,

      Penny
      Penny

        • LOL….but you are so wonderful…two of you would be especially nice!! Having spent some wonderful time in Canada this year, my husband and I think sometimes our best bet would be to move there – especially the way our country is going right now – but no place is perfect (especially not this side of Heaven)!

          Blessings sweet friend,

          Bev xo

  2. Last week, I was feeling less than loving toward a fellow mother at my daughter’s PreK. Later, I prayed for her and for opportunity to connect with her. (This is not typical of me, and anyway our kids arent friends, so I was pretty sure I was off the hook.) Then yesterday, my daughter excitedly announced after school, “I made a new friend today!” Yes. Sigh. I was not off the hook.
    We are never off the hook. And when we are open to relationships–even begrudgingly so, apparently!!!–God can use our willingness to build bridges. Love is not optional.
    Thanks for these beautiful and challenging words.

  3. Thank you for this message! This is a good word spoken aptly, like golden apples in silver bowl. What an encouragement because we can feel so helpless looking at all the evil and hatred swirling around us. God asks two things of us: to love Him and to love our neighbor. Thank you for reminding us…it is so easy to get distracted from this.

  4. thank you for the gentle and encouraging reminder to love to the fullest. if any reading this comment would hold me in prayer today and throughout this week, i’d greatly appreciate it.

    • Dear Jesus, please help Erica — and all of us — to love You and love people. It’s simple to say and anything but to live out! Help us be like You, as I heard someone last night say, to be a master at using the moments well. Please bless Erica and make her successful in following You completely in her moments today. Amen.

  5. Angela,
    Thank you for being bold and saying this outloud. Government cannot stop the hate, or the laws made to control sin. It is us, being who we are – light in the darkness, a city set on a hill. The days ahead of us seem unusually cruel and dark to us, but they are the same sin that has been here. It’s new generation feeling and seeing its effect on the ones created in God’s image.

    Thank you for encouraging us to be light in the darkness.

  6. Beautifully stated. Hate has infected our local community, and while I’ve been approaching every situation with love, the weight of the hate is staggering.
    Thank you for this well timed encouragement!

  7. Angela, thank you for this timely message. Thank you for the reminder that real love isn’t wimpy (regardless of how it’s perceived). I have a ring with the words “love conquers everything” that I wear frequently as a reminder of this very thing.

  8. Angela,
    Thank-you for touching on this. Hate is harsh, so final. For this reason I’ve tried to teach my children not to.
    I experienced first hand at the playground recently how much it stings from a child I’d only met once. She announced she hated me, with more to follow. The other children asked her to stop. I left stunned, I’d never experienced this before. I wasn’t even sure if she meant it or not she was only a little girl. I prayed her heart would flow with kindness, and when I saw her again she apologized. That made a huge difference to me and made my son feel better. If we all could learn to refrain from harshness I believe we’d be in a much happier place.

    Blessings to all for a good day,

    Penny

  9. What a tmely message. Often the news, or newsfeed on Facebook leaves me,with tears streaming down my face. A heart so heavy I can barely breathe. With physical issues of my own, obe thing I know I can do is pray. When my hands allow I oray and watch God create beauty thru my hands and crochet a hat fir a chemo patient or lap blanket for a Vwteran, or tiny blanket for a NICU baby. God can use us all to spread His love!

    • Sue,
      You exemplify beauty, thank-you for the love you share with others.
      Have a blessed day,

      Penny

  10. Angela you are spot on! 🙂 Love is no wimp. We must stand up and stand strong as our culture is fragmenting and does not know the power and grace of God’s love. To love in the face of hate is the face of Jesus. Thank you for your beautiful and challenging words. 🙂

  11. Love is no wimp, agreed. And children nor adults should be able to stand hate. I said before to people that this election was not about men versus women but right and wrong. I have read and heard the good old boy things that will make Christians vote for Trump, and the arrogance and hate toward Hillary Clinton. Love will not let you be ignorant of His ways and thoughts that are higher. We have to forgive, if she wins, I pray that the Lord makes her a Deborah over America, and she was a mother to Israel. I may not agree with everything they stand for but we are to pray for leaders to have peace.

  12. Angela,

    These are such perilous times. I have prayed often that God would come back and take us to our true home. I’m so very tired of all the hate, mistrust, etc. going on in the world now. It seems like it’s getting worse by the day! We need to shower this world with God’s love! The best thing we can do for one another is pray. Pray for those who persecute you. We can also give people smiles and nice waves. God can use that to change & soften their hearts and bring about some peace. Pray hard about this election. As I see it there is no real good choice. Pray for your leaders and see who God puts in control of this country!

    Blessings 🙂

  13. Thank you for reminding us of the need to walk in love. It is so easy to become distracted on a daily basis (a tactic of the enemy to cause our focus to be misplaced). The love of God has been shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. He knew that left to our own devices, we would operate in the flesh, but thanks to the power of The Holy Spirit, we can know His love and, choose to share that love with others. I love how The Lord brings songs to our remembrance to minister to us. The last two weeks I’ve had the song “The Lord Thy God” rising up in my spirit. It says, “The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty, so mighty. And I saw Him high and lifted up with power and grace and authority. And He shall reign in the midst of thee forever and ever. Amen”. What beautiful words to hold onto that no matter our problems, or all the issues surrounding us, that He is in the midst of us, He’s mighty, so mighty. Thank you for sharing and lighting the fire in us to be more like Him.

  14. I was reminded at our women’s bible study last week that I can be as hateful and unloving as our presidential candidates but God loves us all the same!! I have pledged to pray the candidates we have before us through their campaign. Tough decision that I must remind myself everyday!!
    Sandy

  15. I needed this, so badly. It has been a very bad few days in my world. Without getting into unnecessary details, I’ve felt the heaviness of hate, like what’s talked about here, and it has been wretched.

    Thank you for these words. They came at just the right moment.