The best 15 minutes of yesterday was when I rocked a little 2 year old while she watched TV. I sat down in the rocker while I was waiting to have lunch with my Mom and Dad. Little Ashley, a child in their care at Scott House, came over, crawled onto my lap, snuggled in, and made herself comfortable. Later her older sister, age 3, wanted to sit next to me during lunch, where she basked in the attention I gave her. Making those little kids feel special by giving them a few moments of focused attention was not only good for them, it was good for my soul!
We need to love and be loved. We hunger for the affirmation of our person that is found in receiving love and affection. As adults we move away from the simple expression of the hug and experience love in words sincerely and creatively say, "You matter to me!" These words build our sense of personal worth, letting us know that we are valued beyond our 'work' and function in society. As much as we need to loved in that way, we also need to give that kind of love away liberally.
Genuine Love is so precious, such a catalyst for transformation, so "of God" -- that the Evil One does everything he can to frustrate the expression of it.
Sex - If possible he will convince us that sex is love; and he's been quite successful doing that in our present American culture. Our teens, particularly the girls, have so entangled sex and love that many are giving themselves in self-demeaning ways thinking that the guys will 'love' them in return.
Religion - He uses religious zeal to great effect in destroying love. Consumed with a need for the triumph of "truth" many Muslims hate Christians and Jews. With equal prejudice, Christians quickly assume a place of superiority, pointing out the deficiencies of Hindus and Buddhists. Even among Christians, being 'right' is usually more important than being loving - and 'right' is usually whatever 'we' are - Baptist, Pentecostal, Calvinist, Catholic, Sacramental, Charismatic. How proudly we wear our labels to make sure everyone is aware of our position and from the well-defended heights we rain down scorn on those differently persuaded.
Ego- Then, too, the Devil uses our innate love of self to frustrate the expression of love. He does whatever he is able to do to remind us when our hunger for love is unmet and to convince us that we could not possibly extend ourselves in love and kindness given our own need. How many marriages have perished because neither spouse will move to meet the other's need for love until they feel that their own need is met? How many friendships have died because one person became convinced they weren't getting their fair share of affection?
Believer, we can LOVE and we must. God, in Christ Jesus, has loved us and from that 'first cause' has sparked in us the ability to love Him and others with abandon. Meditate on this familiar passage for a few moments --
"My dear friends, we must love each other. Love comes from God, and when we love each other, it shows that we have been given new life. We are now God’s children, and we know him. God is love, and anyone who doesn’t love others has never known him. God showed his love for us when he sent his only Son into the world to give us life. Real love isn’t our love for God, but his love for us. God sent his Son to be the sacrifice by which our sins are forgiven. Dear friends, since God loved us this much, we must love each other." (1 John 4:7-11, CEV)
Paul develops that thought even further as he writes to Timothy. He encourages him not to get side-tracked into being 'right' at the expense of being loving.
"Don’t let people waste time in endless speculation over myths and spiritual pedigrees. For these things only cause arguments; they don’t help people live a life of faith in God. The purpose of my instruction is that all the Christians there would be filled with love that comes from a pure heart, a clear conscience, and sincere faith.
But some teachers have missed this whole point. They have turned away from these things and spend their time arguing and talking foolishness. They want to be known as teachers of the law of Moses, but they don’t know what they are talking about, even though they seem so confident." (1 Timothy 1:4-7, NLT)
Let God love you deeply today. Realize that He loves you, not for your performance or pedigree, but because you are. As that sinks in, ask Him to help you to love someone else in that way... whether it's rocking a little child for a few moments (that will make your heart glad!), or listening intently to a lonely elderly person in the supermarket, or picking up a volunteer task that makes someone's world a little brighter.
"There are three things that will endure—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love." (1 Corinthians 13:13, NLT)
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