Welcome to the first Fruit of the Spirit bloghop started by Laura! My thoughts on this love post began yesterday.
While driving home from work I was thinking about God's love compared with our 'human' love. When I actually stop and think about it, like, really think about it, I'm blown away by the love that God has for me. For all of us. I feel like all the traits of God are so intertwined, it's difficult to separate them. For instance, when I think of his never-ending love, I'm immediately reminded that because of His amazing love, he has eternal forgiveness. His mercy also knows no limit, and his grace is continuous. I feel like they all go hand-in-hand.
But this post is about love!
I think the most amazing thing about God's love is how it shines through us and enables us to love the way that God loves. There is no way (on earth) that I could love the way God wants me to. His desire is for me to love my neighbor as myself. Do you really get what that means?? Think about how much you love yourself. And there's nothing wrong with that! We are each amazing and unique. We should love ourselves. God wants us to. But when we go beyond just loving ourselves as God wants us to and move into that selfish, me first, nobody's getting in my way kind of love, think again. I think maybe that's why God put that "neighbor as theyself" verse in there. As kind of a reality check.
I feel like I'm chasing bunnies now.
Back to loving others.
We all have those people in our lives that rub us the wrong way. We avoid crossing their path in the market. Their conversation focuses only on them and how their situation/experience/life is so much worse/better/difficult than anyone else's. They drain the life right out of you.
God has not given us a suggestion. It's not just a good idea that might be fun to try out every now and then. It's not just a Sunday-only rule that we can avoid the rest of the week. God commands us to love. And not just to love, but to love like God loves. God's love is an everlasting, never changing, lay-down-your-life-for-another kind of love.
Sound too hard? Yeah, it does to me too. This is definitely not an area that I excel in. Feeling convicted? Yeah, me too. I need to work on this.
This kind of love does not come from within us. It comes from God loving through us. When you think there's a person that you just can't love, you're right! Stop trying on your own. Let God love through you. How do you want God to love you? Think about that. Then let God love that person, using you as an instrument of love.
So, who's your neighbor? Will you let God love through you this week?
I feel like I'm chasing bunnies now.
Back to loving others.
We all have those people in our lives that rub us the wrong way. We avoid crossing their path in the market. Their conversation focuses only on them and how their situation/experience/life is so much worse/better/difficult than anyone else's. They drain the life right out of you.
God has not given us a suggestion. It's not just a good idea that might be fun to try out every now and then. It's not just a Sunday-only rule that we can avoid the rest of the week. God commands us to love. And not just to love, but to love like God loves. God's love is an everlasting, never changing, lay-down-your-life-for-another kind of love.
Sound too hard? Yeah, it does to me too. This is definitely not an area that I excel in. Feeling convicted? Yeah, me too. I need to work on this.
This kind of love does not come from within us. It comes from God loving through us. When you think there's a person that you just can't love, you're right! Stop trying on your own. Let God love through you. How do you want God to love you? Think about that. Then let God love that person, using you as an instrument of love.
So, who's your neighbor? Will you let God love through you this week?
1 comment:
Wow. Your post was incredible and SO true! It is really hard to love everyone. I know exactly what you mean when you talk about turning the corner when you see someone you don't want to talk about. You know the thing that sticks out to me though?! Think of every single person you pass in that grocery store that you don't know. You should love them. Every actor you see on tv, every person you pass in traffic, EVERYONE should be loved by you. It's overwhelming..isn't it? But how awesome is it that God loves them more than anything?! He loves the bajillions of people beyond belief. It doesn't get any better than that. No matter how many more people walk this Earth he will still love you more than you can fathom!
Thank you so much for joining along on this. I can't wait to read your other posts :)
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