February

Proverbs 19:11

A person’s wisdom yields patience; it is to one’s glory to overlook an offense.

Feel and Act Love

     Last month we looked at love and how it is a sacrifice of ourselves to others. It is all about giving and serving another person. Christ gave and served us on the cross. His love is an example everyday of how you and I should love others. As I think about this, I realize that if Christ had not gone to such lengths to show and prove His love for me, would I do the same? Would I prove my love to Him or to those I love? It’s easy to love when things are easy, but it’s during the difficult times that love becomes more of a choice; a choice to have patience, faith, hope, and endurance. His love is pure, cleansing, forgiving, and enriching. When we as fallen beings practice that kind of love, it refines and cleanses us. Many times that word “refine” is another way of saying that its making us see our sins and having to change our ways—not always fun, huh? And yet, this is how sanctification truly works in our lives. The word “sanctify” can be defined as ‘to purify or free from sin’. That is what Christ wants for us. Is that not the reason He willingly was nailed on the cross…so that we would be free from sin? As a believer, you are free from the eternal consequences of sin, but not from its earthly effects. Choosing to love as Christ is a choice. It is through practicing His love that the Holy Spirit sanctifies us.
     I talk about love again because even though we’ve already seen that sacrifice goes hand in hand when it comes to loving others, the truth is it is hard to love that way. Giving of ourselves does not come easy and sometimes we do truly love others. We just love ourselves more. Think about the last time it was hard to forgive someone. How about that time you were asked to help serve a meal, help someone move, or give an extra offering? What about prayer? Are you praying for those who’ve asked for it? This isn’t about guilt. It’s about how love comes in many forms and how we must recognize all of them. It’s about loving those we live with and loving those outside our ‘circle’. Christ loves us not just by His death, but by His life in us. He loves us by forgiving us every day, redeeming us every day, protecting us every day, and by refining us so that we can love like Him. I hope there’s a certain amount of sorrow as you read this and realize that you have said ‘no’ to some ‘love opportunities’. Not a sorrow that leads to guilt, but to repentance and choosing to love better. (“yet now I am happy, not because you were made sorry, but because your sorrow led you to repentance..” Romans 7:9a)
     For many of us, love sometimes comes down to time. I will be the first to admit that I can be selfish with my time. You’ve heard the phrase “time is money”. Well, in our culture right now, time is precious and valued very much, just like money. I agree that we must protect our time, but to what lengths? We’ve got to let God’s love penetrate where it hurts and I believe it hurts us when it comes to our time and our money. Everything we have, our time, our money, our families, and our bodies belong to God. He has made us stewards to care for such things. How do we love as He loves with the resources He’s given us? I can tell you I don’t measure up that great. I can be selfish with my time and money. The reality is that I have no problem giving my money and time to my family or my closest friends. That’s relatively easy. Even if I don’t feel like loving them, I choose to because of my relationship with them. Anyone else feel that way, too? For the most part I want to serve them and I have no problem sacrificing for them. But, what about those I don’t have a close relationship with? Should sacrificial love be shown to only those I know? What about those that have hurt me or those I don’t know very well. Am I expected to love them with that same love and compassion I have for my family? Did Christ distinguish His love between His disciples and those that nailed Him to the cross? Love hurts.
     You and I have different backgrounds, personalities, strengths, and weaknesses that allow us to relate to others in ways that may not be similar. The Lord has carefully put people in our lives to love us, sharpen us, rebuke us, and comfort us. This is another way He loves us. He wants to grow us in His love. He wants us to experience Himself in many forms. Yet love is not complicated. We can’t forget that truth. Love may be hard, it may not be wanted, it may be wonderful, but it is not complicated. The Lord has made that clear. It was love that allowed Him to create us, it was love that caused Him to save us, it was love that drew Him to the cross, and it was love that moved Him to redeem us eternally. Is it His love that draws me to serve others, is it His love that compels me to sacrifice my time and money, is it His love that moves me to get out of my comfort zone? I wish I could truly say yes to all these questions. I hope that you desire to say yes to these questions. This is the month of commercial love. Valentine’s Day is a recognized Love day. Whatever we may think of it, let’s take advantage of it. It is okay and even fun to love with heart balloons and heart shaped candy, but what if we also use this ‘love’ month to practice Real Love? To show other’s that love is not just giving of gifts, but of oneself as Christ did on the cross? We can’t love others right if we don’t feel and understand God’s own love for us. Love is feelings and actions together.

“True love always feels. But please note this crucial distinction: Feeling doesn’t necessarily mean you love; but if you truly love, you feel…..This means that when God loves, He loves in such a way that He is not just concerned about getting you to heaven. He cares about your comprehensive well-being, every minute detail of your life. He checks into all the nooks and crannies of your existence. No area goes unloved by God because if He gave you Jesus, He’s not going to hold back anything else. He has invested too much in you to overlook anything”

- Tony Evans, Our God is Awesome -