Have you ever wanted to be wanted? \u00a0I mean, REALLY wanted! \u00a0And loved…DEEPLY loved! \u00a0I think we all do. \u00a0I think we all crave someone to take us and accept us and cherish us. \u00a0And so, we set about trying to create a persona that will attract people so they care\u00a0about us and care for us. \u00a0We primp and we present our best sides and skill sets. \u00a0We work hard to being the best we can be so that we appear to be desirable. \u00a0Eventually someone comes along and says the three magic words we long to hear, “I love you.” \u00a0Please know, I am not talking about romantic notions here (although we do these things even more when trying to attract a life-partner). I am referring to the basic human desire to be loved. \u00a0Now we are loved. \u00a0Phew! \u00a0We can relax, right?! \u00a0No. \u00a0Not really. \u00a0Deep in the recess of our psyche there sticks a small thorn…the thorn of fear. \u00a0This thorn can cause us internal irritation and not even draw a lot of specific attention to itself. \u00a0Something is wrong but we can’t put a specific name to it.<\/p>\n
There is the other side of the “love coin” and that is, we want to be a loving person. \u00a0Perhaps we have been mistreated in the past and we “never want to become like those people.” \u00a0We try so hard to love and accept people but continue to be critical of them and untrusting. \u00a0In fact, sometimes we can be downright abusive! \u00a0We get frustrated with ourselves and vow to try harder, to be better, to love stronger. \u00a0For the next while we actually do pretty good! \u00a0But then, then there’s “that” person…the one who is very trying. \u00a0“That person” who is like the Mount Everest to your “love climb.” \u00a0If you could love “that person” you would KNOW how far you’ve come. \u00a0Unfortunately, it only takes one very frustrating encounter and you find yourself exhausted, wondering what is wrong with you.<\/p>\n
There may be a third side to this love-scene…you enter into a place that claims to be loving. \u00a0I.e. The church. \u00a0Some say its 50\/50 as to whether or not you will actually find a church that truly loves people. \u00a0 Unfortunately, I think that ratio may be quite optimistic. \u00a0I know what you’re thinking…either, “WHAT?! You are a pastor! \u00a0You are supposed to be selling…errrr, I mean, supporting the church and promoting it as the representatives of Jesus here on earth!” \u00a0OR you may be have thought, “Damn straight! \u00a0The people I have met who have claimed be Christians never seemed very loving to me. \u00a0The once or twice I did enter into a church no one ever seemed warm and inviting…or their warmth lasted the length of their handshake and directing me to a seat. \u00a0I think I’ll pass on church.” \u00a0The reality is that churches are filled with people who also want to love and be loved but there is a shared issue between us all: we can only love others as we ourselves have experienced being loved. \u00a0Did you catch that? \u00a0We can only love others as we ourselves have experienced being loved.<\/b><\/p>\n
Which brings me to the title of this article “The Love Of God…so misunderstood…so desired.” \u00a0The reason that the love of God is so misunderstood is because we apply our view, experiences and expressions of love to the love of God. \u00a0For example, if we found while growing up that in order to be loved and accepted we needed to achieve and perform at a high level of excellence, we very well might believe that unless we are perfect God can never love us. \u00a0Applied to others, it means when others don’t meet our expectations we don’t communicate the warmth of love to them. \u00a0 \u00a0Or, perhaps you have found that unless you looked a certain way you are not accepted. \u00a0Therefore, if we don’t look a certain way God won’t accept us. \u00a0So we may try to lose that weight or buy certain clothes etc. \u00a0It also means that we transfer that onto others. \u00a0The list is endless and in your heart you may already have begun thinking about your own experience of being loved and accepted or rather, unloved and rejected. \u00a0And therein lies the thorn…fear. \u00a0The thorn of fear goes something like this, “If they really knew me with all my faults and failures, temptations and sins, they would never love me…God would never love me.” \u00a0 We read in 1 John 4:18-19,<\/p>\n
There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. \u00a0For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. \u00a0We love because he first loved us.<\/i><\/p>\n
To be truly loved means we have no fear in that love. \u00a0That is, we are loved through and through, completely and totally, brokenness and all! \u00a0God loves us with \u00a0all of our warts, failures, temptations and twistedness. \u00a0God loves us with all of our fears, darkness, drives and sin. \u00a0He knows you better than you know yourself and he loves you…all of you! \u00a0Did you catch v19? \u00a0“We love because he first loved us.” \u00a0He loved us first…the Bible tells us that while we were still sinners – while we were still his enemies – God loved us. \u00a0How does that make you \u00a0feel to know that God loves you completely and totally?! \u00a0He loves you no matter what you have said or done, are saying or doing, will say or will do! \u00a0 You cannot diminish or increase God’s love for you. \u00a0God loves you. \u00a0Period. \u00a0He is crazy about you! \u00a0He loves you so much that while he takes you as you are he doesn’t want to leave you as you are which is why he died for you so you can be free from fear. \u00a0He put himself out there first as fully as another person can by dying for you. \u00a0He became broken so you can become whole. \u00a0He took on sin so you could be free from it’s shackles. \u00a0He was rejected so you would be accepted. \u00a0And all of this he did while you were still rejecting him because he loves you that much. \u00a0There is nothing that you have attained or accomplished that wooed him to you. \u00a0He just loves you.<\/p>\n
The cool thing is that when we come to him and accept his love we don’t have to earn it and we can just soak in it. \u00a0And because of this we can pass it along to others. \u00a0We can let God’s love move through us to other’s who are going through life either skeptical of love or fearful in love. \u00a0We are told in the Bible that when we come to God and receive him, we become his children, that is, we receive his DNA, his seed (1 Peter 1:23; 1 John 3:9). \u00a0What does that mean for us? \u00a0In the bible we are also told that, “God is love” (1 John 4:8) which means love isn’t something God does…its something God is. \u00a0I had been reflecting on this and asked myself, “How can God love me? \u00a0How can he love me with all of my struggles and sin?” \u00a0My counselor responded by saying, “When you ask that question you reveal that you don’t know about God’s love. \u00a0Love is God’s DNA…God cannot NOT love. \u00a0For example, an orange tree produces oranges because it has the DNA of an orange tree. \u00a0It won’t or cannot produce apples unless its DNA changes. \u00a0God is love, that is, he cannot do anything but love.” \u00a0When I heard this my mind blew up and my heart was overwhelmed. \u00a0God loves me. \u00a0Period. God loves you. \u00a0Period. \u00a0Come up with as many reasons as you like as to how this is not possible and not one of them will hold any weight in light of the Bible and the truth of God’s love. \u00a0When we are the seed of God it means we too can love like God loves. \u00a0Others around us will not need to meet our expectations or perform to certain levels or look certain ways before we can authentically love them as they are. \u00a0We can love them extravagantly just as God loves us…we can do this because we have now experienced love in a new way, a more complete way. \u00a0And now, we can pass it on to others who are craving to love and be loved. \u00a0The love of God…now do you understand? \u00a0God loves you!!!\u00a0<\/b>\u00a0How will you respond?<\/p>\n
“They will know you are my disciples by your love.” ~ Jesus<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Have you ever wanted to be wanted? \u00a0I mean, REALLY wanted! \u00a0And loved…DEEPLY loved! \u00a0I think we all do. \u00a0I think we all crave someone to take us and accept us and cherish us. \u00a0And so, we set about trying … Continue reading