I’ve always been an all or nothing kind of gal.
I’m like a steep roller coaster!
Loving God has been quite the journey for me.
I gave my heart to Christ when I was 5 or 6- I remember them explaining how Jesus died for my sins and that I could ask for forgiveness, and ask him to be the Lord of my life and thank him for saving me and that I would be saved.
I remember being so clear that I was saved and that I needed to obey Jesus and follow his will for my life.
Unfortunately, I felt very unsuccessful doing that.
I knew God loved me, but I acted like love was earned. Combine that with my extreme personality and if I couldn’t get it right 100% of the time, then why bother trying to get it right any of the time?
So, I would resort to selfishness, stubbornness, and frustration.
I believe that our love for God is reflected in how we love others. If that’s the case for you, what deal have you made about how that looks?
Here’s some of the deals I made:
First, Unconditional love means you have to live up to your end of the bargain loving me and all my mess regardless of how I show up, but I should be able to show love to you on a sliding scale of how much I feel like it on any given day and base my attention on that.
How’s that show up in your relationships? Huh? That one doesn’t turn out so well.
Second, I really thought unconditional love meant that there was a basic love level and if I got on their good side by doing what they liked, then they’d like me more if I acted more like them.
But that really wasn’t love at all. It was a craving for attention.
When love is steady regardless of how I showed up if feels unconditional.
While it may seem odd at first if grand gestures are a way you show love when someone is making you happy, but you act mad when they disappoint you, then it isn’t steady.
Does this ever show up in your relationships with others? In either your attempts to love other people- and your emotions get in the way, or in your reception of love from others. Have you ever considered that an over the top response and attention to someone’s gift could actually be reinforcing a false pattern of belief about the love of God?
In order to truly love God, you must love others.
In order to truly love others, you must love God.
What does truly loving God look like?
Love rejoices not in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth.
It bears all things.
It believes all things.
It hopes all things.
It endures all things.
Love never fails.
What one next step will you take today to love someone unconditionally?
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