Love was God's idea. Love is who He is. We were created just so He could pour all
that He is into our lives. He even took that love to the cross to
cancel out the biggest hindrance to receiving and giving love: sin = distrust
and disobedience. From the beginning all He has
asked of us is to love Him and each other. He wants us to share in the blessing
of loving.
When Jesus was asked what was
the most important commandment – what was most important to God, He said, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all
your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this:
‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.” (Mark 12:29-31) First and
foremost, we are to love God with all our affection, adoration, attention and
actions, than love others with the same protective and providing love that we
naturally give to ourselves.
As followers of Jesus and recipients of His
incredible love, Jesus upped the game. “A new command
I give you: Love one another. As I have
loved you, so you must love one
another. (John 13:34) Instead
of loving others like we naturally love ourselves, we are to love others like
Jesus loves us.
So, what is His love truly like? Listen with your heart as HE tells you …
My love for you is patient. I quietly and
willingly wait, moving at the pace of grace, so your needs are met and you are
blessed.
My love for you is kind. Every act of
kindness, big and small, conveys how valuable you truly are to Me. What is best
for you is always My upmost priority.
My love for you is not jealous. Jealousy is all about “me.” My love is all about you! In My word, I say
that I am a jealous God who insists on being Your only God, but that too is all
about you. I don’t want you settling for a less-than-god. I want the very best for you, and My dying on
the cross for you should tell you the extent I willingly go.
I don’t brag about how much I love you.
I don’t love you to make Myself look or even feel good. My love is not
motivated by self-glory. You motivate my love – YOU, not what you do or the
current status of our relationship. I love you because you are you. I am
not going to brag about it or write it across the sky so everyone can see. No,
I will simply show you again and again and again.
There is no arrogance in My love for
you. I don’t pat Myself on My back and
congratulate Myself on what a wonderful loving God I am. I don’t keep a list of all the reason you
don’t deserve My love, but give it anyways. Distrust and disobedience matter
because they hurt you, not because they impact my love for you.
I will keep showing you how much I love
you. But those demonstrations will always be appropriate - never foolish, out
of place or for “the show!” Most you won’t
even notice. They actually fill every one of your days, even, especially, those
really hard ones.
Remember, My love is never about
Me. It is never motivated by what I get
out of it. I love those who hate Me, those who reject Me, and those who despite
our special relationship forget I’m always with them. I truly do want to do
life with you. However, I let you choose day-by-day, situation-by-situation.
Because of My love for you, I am not
easily pushed to the point of punishment. Out of love, if and when necessary, I
will discipline and correct you. But it takes a lot before direct punishment
results. There is absolutely no joy in seeing someone, anyone, suffer,
especially you.
I would never ever make anyone suffer
just because I was wronged. My love for you is too great to be vindictive. When
it comes to suffering, I want you to realize that any and all suffering you
experience rolls back on Me. I personally carry the weight and pain of it for
you and with you.
I also want you to know that just
because I love everyone does not mean I am not saddened by the unrighteousness
in the world. It breaks My heart. On the other hand, it thrills Me to see My
truth accepted and become a part of lives. It is then My love can do its
transforming work and enable you to become all I designed you to be.
My love bears all things - all your cares
… all your burdens … all your concerns … all your joys … all that fills your
days and your mind and your heart.
My love believes all things. I see wonderful potential in each and every
person. I believe you can be all that I want you to be – all I created and am
recreating you to be.
My love is full of hope. It is positive. It is possible. It is the
hope that will never disappoint.
My love endures all things. Nothing, absolutely NOTHING will change My
love for you. That includes length of
time, circumstances, situations, and most of all whatever you do.
My love will never fail. It will never
be inadequate. It will never stop. It will never let you down.
I LOVE YOU!
Now I am asking you to love others like I love you. I know that sounds and feels impossible. But,
if you allow My Spirit to fill your life, I am willing to love through you. It
is a command I will enable you to keep because I love them as much as I love
you.
Love is patient,
love is kind, is not jealous; love
does not brag, is not arrogant, does
not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take
into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness,
but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all
things, endures all things. Love never fails.
(1 Corinthians 13:4-8)
Love like that!
