Do you believe that God rejoices over you, watches over you, and secures you and your loved ones ~ in his forever-hands?
Show me someone who knows she is love-covered, and I’ll show you someone who knows how to love. People say, “you can’t give what you don’t have,” but neither can you give what you don’t know you have.
How free can I be if I don’t know I’m free? How can I experience the fullness of God’s love if I experience it in my heart, but not in my mind?
Heart Imagery
Jesus wants us to intentionally remember the intensity of His passion for us. He wants us to picture it in our minds until we’re gripped by Christ’s hanging-on-the-cross-love, His “Father-forgive-them-for-they-don’t-know-what-they-do” love, and His I-did-this-all-for-YOU-love.
Carla, a friend of mine, is often plagued with feelings of guilt and unworthiness. Carla knows God loves her, but because of her past (rather, because of Satan’s lies about her past), it’s difficult for Carla to see how God could possibly love her as much as He loves others, especially the “good girls.”
Just as sin makes us equally guilty and unworthy, confession makes us equally cleansed and love-covered. When Jesus covers our sins, He also wants to rescue our hijacked, dirt-splattered consciences. Satan lost his dominion. We’re a clean machine, so we better believe it!
[box] Let us go right into the presence of God with sincere hearts fully trusting him. For our guilty consciences have been sprinkled with Christ’s blood to make us clean, and our bodies have been washed with pure water.” Hebrews 10:22[/box]
When Facts Meet Feelings
It was a ho-hum day in Bible College when I returned to my room to rest on my bunk bed. I was tired, wired, a little down, and a tad nervous about the future. All normal stuff for me. Then something extraordinary happened. The only way I can describe it is to say God met with me. As I lay in my bed, wave after wave of His love washed over me. I wanted to freeze the moment, intense, raw, and real… God. Loved. Me!
Whether we experience an answered prayer, meet with God in a special way, or witness a miraculous touch ~ these types of love-winks are all God’s little extras. You could also look at them like the special features He throws in with your movie, His love story.
We need to hold on to them, and turn them around in our minds. They’re true and lovely and pure. They remind us of what God’s Word already tells us. We are the apple of God’s eye. His inheritance. His exceedingly great reward. His prize. His everything.
Father, thank you for your indescribable love than makes me want to further reciprocate it. Please may I grow in it daily ~ both in knowledge and experience. I know it’s a safeguard to me. I want to love you with all my heart, all my soul, all my mind, and all my strength. In Jesus’ name.
Now it’s your turn
What are some of the reasons why/how Satan tries to downplay, dismiss, and darken your knowledge of God’s love? What are some of the ways God has shown you the beautiful reality of His love?
Cheryl, I was just contemplating today about God’s love and now I read your blog entry and it surely reinforced what I was thinking. I kept saying, God created us to love Him, but the best part is He already loves us. I love Him, and He loves me. The last part of that had much greater heart-meaning to me than it ever did in my life. It was a great feeling.
The ways Satan steals my love-covers? My biological birth family now consists of 3 brothers (only one is a believer) who don’t want to treat me like family. The beliver keeps asking me to think about why that is. I am not at all surprised since we were not privileged to have loving and godly parents. Examples of showing love to each other were rare growing up, but fights between parents and amongst six siblings were the norm.(My 2 older sisters died many years ago.)
This believing brother and his wife and tween son have decided they don’t want to be friends with me, and I’m not to call or try to make arrangements to be together. I am only allowed to email. I have no husband since he died 23 years ago nor a child at home, so I sometimes feel isolated and unloved. Satan steals my love-covers when I am rejected by people who ought to love me, but don’t.
I just have to keep saying, “God loves me and that’s so much more important and valuable than any human’s love”. If I were an orphan, I could still bask in God’s love.
Linda, I thank you so much for your openness. It grieves my heart when people experience rejection from loved ones. I’ve been there too, and the scars run deep.
Then I think of Jesus, despised and rejected by many. And if anybody knows the meaning of scars… Even today, people reject Jesus. He understands.
I pray God will make your light outshine any darkness. May they see your good works and praise your Father in heaven.
Lord, if possible, please clear up any misunderstandings and restore all factions. We seek your peace and pursue it. Make a way where there seems to be no way. May your love abound more and more, in us and through us. In Jesus’ name.
Loving God, I long for you to be the love of my life. I hear of others having gooey feelings about you and dramatic spiritual experiences but at times it seems my only feeling is that of being left out. I want to find you warm and intimate and perfect in all your ways but sometimes you seem cold and aloof and more interested in other people.
Father God, thank you that your love knows no bounds, and you don’t show favoritism, even when it feels like it. Please bless Mercadeo in an extra special, all-inclusive way today. In Jesus’ name. Amen!