20 Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does

not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they

have not seen.  21 And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also

love their brother and sister” 

(1 John 4:20-21, NIV)

“ So encourage each other to build each other up, just as you are already doing” (1 Thessalonians 5:11, TLB).

     I have caught a fair share of catfish as an angler: blue, channel, and flathead. However, the kittenfish is a species with which I am unfamiliar. Until now.

     Kittenfishing is the act of misrepresenting yourself in a significant way. This means of deception is prevalent in the digital world. Kittenfishing may include photos that employ illusory angles, rounding down one’s age, or wearing a hat to hide a bald patch.

“Come, see a man who told me all that I ever did. Can this be the Christ?” (John 4:29, ESV).

     Is love blind? This is the question Nick and Vanessa Lachey have been posing on the Netflix show they host. Love Is Blind is a social experiment where single men and woman seek out love and get engaged before ever meeting in person. By the way, I know of one man who went out on a blind date. It didn’t start out that way until she brought out the pepper spray.

“She listened to no voice; she accepted no discipline. She didn’t trust in the LORD, nor did she draw near to her God” (Zephaniah 3:2, CEB).

     I was introduced to a new word over the weekend: textlationship. A textlationship is a connection between people who text one another frequently but rarely interact with each other in person. People are spending more time connecting with one another on their digital platforms.

Read John 21:15-17

     As I was preparing for this Sunday’s message on forgiveness, an idea came to me upon which I have been musing. Jesus asked Peter three separate times, “Do you love me?” On the first occasion Jesus uses the word agape`. The second time around Jesus employs the term phileo. In plain terms, Jesus asks Peter, “Do you love me unconditionally?” Then, Jesus follows up by asking, “Will you be my friend?”