Your city, town, state, and country needs you to shine the light of Jesus in it. A small glimmer will turn into a spark, which will cause a fire. It is going to look nothing like you think; in fact, it is going to be so much better! Be encouraged and know that your mission field is right outside your window waiting for you!"
The Greatest Calling of Our Lives
“Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?" Jesus said to him,“‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.” [Matthew 22:36-40]
If you grew up in Sunday School, this was probably the first Bible passage you ever memorized.
We all know what our number one priority in life should be, loving God with all of our hearts.
We try to love Him with every breath, every thought, and every action...but we still fall short.
We are commanded to love, and we want to love, but we are weak and broken people.
My natural response is to grit my teeth, and try harder. But the truth is, I cannot stir up more love for God inside of my heart. There is only one way to love Jesus with the love He so deserves...and that is by allowing myself to be loved by Him. God is love (1 John 4:8), and I cannot love Him back in the way He so deserves to be loved, without Him first pouring His love into me!
“God's love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.” Romans 5:5
We cannot love God in our own strength. The love we return to Him is from His impartation of love by His Holy Spirit. So in other words, the only way to “give love” to God, is by “getting” or receiving His love! There is nothing good inside of me unless God first pours it into me...so I need to open my hands and receive this Holy Love!
Going Deeper in His Love
The love of God is truly unfathomable. We could be in Heaven for a billion years and still not fully grasp the quality of this pure, intense, wild and wonderful love. But just because our brains don't understand it, doesn't mean we should dismiss it! In fact, we should do just the opposite! We should search out this mystery of mysteries, and ask God's Holy Spirit for revelation, that He would daily unfold and reveal the reality of His love to our hearts! [Check out Ephesians 3:18].
John 15:9 says: “Just as the Father has loved me, so I have loved you. So abide in my love.”
In other words, this passage is saying, "with the same intensity that Father loves Jesus, Jesus loves you." Whattt?!! How can that be?! It almost sounds like heresy! How could Jesus dare to love us humans so deeply and intensely?!
Sisters, it is not anything that we have done. It is simply who God is. If His character has always been (and always will be) pure, holy, exuberant, excited, joyful, amazing love...then how could He love us any less than with every inch and fiber of His Being?
If He were to look at you, and love you any less than His normal 100% level of love, He would actually deny Himself and His character. Jesus loves you 100% ALL the time, with ALL of His heart, soul, mind and strength! The reason He asks us to love Him with our all, is because He loves us with HIS all. (Wow!)
God's love for you is never going to grow based on your behavior or performance. When you stand before Him in Heaven as His pure and spotless Bride, He won't suddenly love you more. His love for you is already TOTALLY maxed out. Sister, that is the way He feels about you right now!
[I offer a word of caution here...just because God loves you with all His heart, doesn't mean He's not grieved by areas of sin in our life. His love is not a free pass to live selfishly and play with sin. God can love you 100%, but still be heartbroken about active areas of sin in your life.