1 John 4:7-21

The other night I was sitting on the couch before Jeremy got home and I was just reading through 1 John.  I really felt romanced by the Lord when reading this again.  So easily we forget about the true character of God.  God is love!  Love is the one thing we as humans strive for.  We want to feel loved and we want to give love. Yet when we put God on the back burner we end up wearing ourselves out trying to get this love from all different places. We try earn other peoples love, we give gifts and compliments in hopes that we will get love in return.  We try to look pretty or act sweet to gain love.  We expend all of our options to try to achieve love.  At the end of the day, when we have worn ourselves thin and still have been left empty handed God reminds us that He is love.  He is the true source of love.  He has given us the ultimate sacrifice to show us that.

It is impossible to feel real, lasting love apart from God.  When we try to find love through our spouses, friendships, our families, etc. we end up feeling satisfied for a short period of time and then we go on to find the next thing that will fill the hole temporarily.  I am guilty as charged!  There are so many times when I feel as thought I need Jeremy to act a certain way or to do a certain thing for me to feel love.  I put an expectation on him to be the ultimate source of love, and there is no way that he could fill those shoes.  There is no way any of us could love the way that Jesus has.  We need to get our security from the love He has given us!  When we do this, and realize just how special we are then we are able to love from that place.

There is such freedom with not trying to earn love.  Not trying to do deeds to receive love. Not having to impress anyone or be anything that we're not.  We have already been given the greatest gift of love when Jesus came.  We do not need to look to another person to feel loved and that is such a huge weight lifted.  "And so we know and rely on the love God has for us" 4:16.  This is my prayer! It is so easy to get caught up in the world, and so easy to forget that we have already been given the greatest love of all.  There is nothing we can do or say to change that, and that is a relief!  Thank you Lord!