Receive His Love
This weekend people all over the country will celebrate the people they love. I think about all the things people do to go out of their way on Valentine's Day—cards, surprises, candy, presents. I wonder how it would affect people's relationships if they celebrated the ones they love like this all the time.
I think it's important that we learn to be comfortable with saying "I love you" as often as possible. We need to allow these words to flow freely in our homes to create an atmosphere of love. At the same time, we need to get comfortable with hearing those words spoken to us.
A young woman heard me speaking on this subject and wrote to tell me how much she appreciated my encouragement to embrace those words, "I love you." "I really want to do that," she wrote, "but I get so down on myself, and I feel like I'm not good enough for my husband." She admitted that her feelings of inadequacy were driving a wedge in their relationship. She knew her husband loved her, but she couldn't embrace his love because of her own feelings.
I think we do something similar in our relationship with God when we don't allow His love and acceptance to give us a sense of security and cover our failures. God's love is not basedon our performance, but when we recognize and embrace His love, it will improve our performance. His love builds trust in our heart and mind so that we are free to improve our lives and become all we were created to be. His love causes us to want to know Him better and to want to know ourselves better. His love motivates us to be our absolute best!
There is a story in the New Testament about a woman who was caught in the act of adultery, and the religious leaders of the town were ready to stone her to death. They called Jesus over to see what He would do, but Jesus surprised them all with His response. He didn't condemn the woman; instead, He showed her love and compassion. Jesus reached out His hand of healing to the woman and something supernatural happened—she was restored, and He sent her off better than she was before.
We have to remember, God is not in the business of condemning people. He's in the business of improving and loving people. He always wants to send us off better than we were before. You may have encountered people who want to accuse you and throw rocks at you, so to speak. Hurting people hurt people. But God is not ever going to throw rocks at you or accuse you. He wants to empower you to live a better life! Maybe you can relate to this woman. Maybe you've made some mistakes, or maybe you've been hurt by someone who threw rocks at you. Today is your day to let go of that hurt and open your heart to receive God's healing. Receive His love today so that you can move forward in the abundant life He has for you.
I think it's important that we learn to be comfortable with saying "I love you" as often as possible. We need to allow these words to flow freely in our homes to create an atmosphere of love. At the same time, we need to get comfortable with hearing those words spoken to us.
A young woman heard me speaking on this subject and wrote to tell me how much she appreciated my encouragement to embrace those words, "I love you." "I really want to do that," she wrote, "but I get so down on myself, and I feel like I'm not good enough for my husband." She admitted that her feelings of inadequacy were driving a wedge in their relationship. She knew her husband loved her, but she couldn't embrace his love because of her own feelings.
I think we do something similar in our relationship with God when we don't allow His love and acceptance to give us a sense of security and cover our failures. God's love is not basedon our performance, but when we recognize and embrace His love, it will improve our performance. His love builds trust in our heart and mind so that we are free to improve our lives and become all we were created to be. His love causes us to want to know Him better and to want to know ourselves better. His love motivates us to be our absolute best!
There is a story in the New Testament about a woman who was caught in the act of adultery, and the religious leaders of the town were ready to stone her to death. They called Jesus over to see what He would do, but Jesus surprised them all with His response. He didn't condemn the woman; instead, He showed her love and compassion. Jesus reached out His hand of healing to the woman and something supernatural happened—she was restored, and He sent her off better than she was before.
We have to remember, God is not in the business of condemning people. He's in the business of improving and loving people. He always wants to send us off better than we were before. You may have encountered people who want to accuse you and throw rocks at you, so to speak. Hurting people hurt people. But God is not ever going to throw rocks at you or accuse you. He wants to empower you to live a better life! Maybe you can relate to this woman. Maybe you've made some mistakes, or maybe you've been hurt by someone who threw rocks at you. Today is your day to let go of that hurt and open your heart to receive God's healing. Receive His love today so that you can move forward in the abundant life He has for you.