Monday, February 9, 2015

Loved

 

[Photo of a young girl with a lipstick kiss on her cheek]


“I have loved you with an everlasting love;
I have drawn you with loving-kindness.”
—Jeremiah 31:3

“Having believed, you were marked in him
with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit.”
—Ephesians 1:13

Everyone knew Rosa’s mom loved her. Every school morning she wore a lipstick “kiss” on her cheek. And, to be sure, Rosa knew her mom loved her, too.

Jeremy also knew his mom loved him. Every day she hid a little note in his lunch box that he would discover and open to read her loving and encouraging words when lunchtime came.

Some of us frequently seem to forget that God has an everlasting love for us. We particularly tend to forget that God loves us when we believe that we’ve failed Him, or when we believe we have done less than a sterling job in some task He has given us to do.

We may not love ourselves very much in such moments, but we can rest assured that God truly does love us every bit as much whether we feel satisfied with our behavior or performance and also whenever we wish we had done so much better.

I have a theory—and this may or may not be true—that the Apostle John called himself “the disciple Jesus loved” to remind himself of God’s incredibly deep affection for him. Perhaps we need to consider ourselves, “the person Jesus loves.”

Think about how that reminder of God’s love might help us through our days.

Keeping God’s love for us always in the forefront of our minds can help us overcome our own weaknesses. Knowing that He loves us can mitigate the feelings we have that others underestimate our value. Recognizing that God’s love for us remains constant and unconditional can give us a buffer against the hardness of a lonely day.

Let’s learn to begin each day asking God to give us tangible reminders of His never-failing love. With that assurance, we need little else!