Deep Joy
Do not judge men by mere appearances; for the light laughter that bubbles on the lip often mantles over the depths of sadness, and the serious look may be the sober veil that covers a divine peace and joy. - Edward Chapin
I was reminded tonight about something I am very passionate about. I didn't realize just how passionate I was about it until I realized how angry I get when people don't get it. That something is the way God sees His children.
Our society runs so heavily on image, on impressions, and yet, most of the time what we glen off of image is not at all what is true about someone. As the quote above states, a person with light laughter may indeed be masking some great sadness and pain. A person with a somber countenance may have greater joy than you will ever know. But even that knowledge - that someone may not be who they appear to be - doesn't prevent us from making decisions about someone based on their appearance. It seems almost to be inherent human nature.
But God is not human - never has been, never will be. So what on earth makes us think that He will look at us the same way we look at other people. God doesn't judge based on appearances. He goes past skin deep. He doesn't make decisions about someone based upon their first impression. He views us in a dramatically different way than most people ever expect. God does not see as we see. His vision is much clearer and much better than ours.
For many years I bought into the lie that God's love for me was based upon what I could do for Him...in fact, I still do sometimes, but at long last I have come to realize that God's opinion of me doesn't come from my actions. God loves me and you just because of who we are.
The more I study what love truly is, the more I realize that I don't know anything about it. This much I do know, though, love is so much bigger and deeper and mysterious than I will ever know. Love doesn't insist that you love back. Love doesn't demand anything from you. Love doesn't insist on it's own way - think about that one for a minute.
God is love...so substitute God for Love in those statements. God doesn't insist that you love Him back. God doesn't demand anything from you. God doesn't insist on His own way.
Wait you say...God does insist on His own way. We have to play by His rules. We have to do what He wants. Do we really? I mean, really think about it. God doesn't make anyone follow Him. He doesn't make anyone do what He wants. He doesn't force anyone to love Him back. That's the choice we get to make. He loves us so much that He lets us decide whether or not to love Him back. Now that's intense!
Think about the person you love most in the whole world - the one that it would nearly kill you to live without. Get a clear picture of them in your mind. Think about your relationship with them. Now imagine that they don't love you back...at all...in fact they hate everything about them. Now imagine loving them just as much even though they hate you. In fact, imagine loving them so much that you would give your life to save them. That's how God loves us. He loves us whether or not we love Him back. He loves us whether or not we do exactly what He wants. He loves us beyond what we can cognitively even wrap our minds around.
I hope you are grasping what I am trying to get across because I'm not sure how else to put it. God's love for you would fill the oceans until they over flowed. It is far greater than anything we could ever dream up or imagine, and we will never see the end of His amazing love.
I want you to take a minute...put down whatever you are doing...stop reading this blog...stop doing everything else and just sit and think about God's love for you for a minute. Really think about it. Meditate on it. Roll it around in your mind.
.
.
.
.
.
.
I pray that it would cause a deep and great joy to bubble up within you. I pray that you would be stunned and overwhelmed at His great love for you. I pray that your eyes would be daily opened to see the love with which He surrounds you every day.
Okay, homework...for the next week each day think of one way God has shown you His love that day.
And peace out, my friends...just one day left in 2009!!
I was reminded tonight about something I am very passionate about. I didn't realize just how passionate I was about it until I realized how angry I get when people don't get it. That something is the way God sees His children.
Our society runs so heavily on image, on impressions, and yet, most of the time what we glen off of image is not at all what is true about someone. As the quote above states, a person with light laughter may indeed be masking some great sadness and pain. A person with a somber countenance may have greater joy than you will ever know. But even that knowledge - that someone may not be who they appear to be - doesn't prevent us from making decisions about someone based on their appearance. It seems almost to be inherent human nature.
But God is not human - never has been, never will be. So what on earth makes us think that He will look at us the same way we look at other people. God doesn't judge based on appearances. He goes past skin deep. He doesn't make decisions about someone based upon their first impression. He views us in a dramatically different way than most people ever expect. God does not see as we see. His vision is much clearer and much better than ours.
For many years I bought into the lie that God's love for me was based upon what I could do for Him...in fact, I still do sometimes, but at long last I have come to realize that God's opinion of me doesn't come from my actions. God loves me and you just because of who we are.
The more I study what love truly is, the more I realize that I don't know anything about it. This much I do know, though, love is so much bigger and deeper and mysterious than I will ever know. Love doesn't insist that you love back. Love doesn't demand anything from you. Love doesn't insist on it's own way - think about that one for a minute.
God is love...so substitute God for Love in those statements. God doesn't insist that you love Him back. God doesn't demand anything from you. God doesn't insist on His own way.
Wait you say...God does insist on His own way. We have to play by His rules. We have to do what He wants. Do we really? I mean, really think about it. God doesn't make anyone follow Him. He doesn't make anyone do what He wants. He doesn't force anyone to love Him back. That's the choice we get to make. He loves us so much that He lets us decide whether or not to love Him back. Now that's intense!
Think about the person you love most in the whole world - the one that it would nearly kill you to live without. Get a clear picture of them in your mind. Think about your relationship with them. Now imagine that they don't love you back...at all...in fact they hate everything about them. Now imagine loving them just as much even though they hate you. In fact, imagine loving them so much that you would give your life to save them. That's how God loves us. He loves us whether or not we love Him back. He loves us whether or not we do exactly what He wants. He loves us beyond what we can cognitively even wrap our minds around.
I hope you are grasping what I am trying to get across because I'm not sure how else to put it. God's love for you would fill the oceans until they over flowed. It is far greater than anything we could ever dream up or imagine, and we will never see the end of His amazing love.
I want you to take a minute...put down whatever you are doing...stop reading this blog...stop doing everything else and just sit and think about God's love for you for a minute. Really think about it. Meditate on it. Roll it around in your mind.
.
.
.
.
.
.
I pray that it would cause a deep and great joy to bubble up within you. I pray that you would be stunned and overwhelmed at His great love for you. I pray that your eyes would be daily opened to see the love with which He surrounds you every day.
Okay, homework...for the next week each day think of one way God has shown you His love that day.
And peace out, my friends...just one day left in 2009!!
You amaze me. Jesus amazes me. This blog just cements all this stuff him and I have been talking about.
ReplyDeleteI love your heart for him...and I love that he loves us.
I have amazing songs for you. I'm posting one on my blog tonight.