Rediscovering God's Love

Have you ever stopped your worship mid-sentence and raised your hands just to meditate on the greatness of God? 

Have you ever felt joy bubble up from within your soul and overwhelm you to the point that you can't help but jump up and down and raise a shout? 

Have you ever felt the heavy press of awe and wonder of the Lord push you down to the floor in surrender?

What I have just described to you, friends, is worship. I was blessed to experience this type of worship this past weekend at Bowling Green State University's annual Gospelfest weekend. Although I missed the extra sleep and time of relaxation a weekend would normally bring, what I experienced was far more valuable. God found me this weekend, and allowed me to experience Himself in a way that I never had before. During the first night of worship, God impressed upon me that He is the only One that matters. Being a Christian comes with responsibility - we are to love our neighbor, respect our parents, defend the poor and the widow. We must treat one another as we would like to be treated, and bear each other's burdens. Christians are called to pray for one another, fellowship with one another, and serve one another. We are commanded to love those who do have not yet turned to Christ, pray for them, and tell them about the gospel. Essentially, the call of a Christian is to love and serve others. Right?

Wrong. In Luke 5:26, Jesus says, "If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple." What?? That's a pretty radical statement. I thought we were supposed to love other people, not hate them! Yes. Here is the point that I believe Jesus is making: Our love for Yahweh must be so deeply ingrained within our being that all other love - for our parents, children, siblings, etc. - pales in comparison. Our love for God should penetrate our core. God's love should define us. We must love Him so much that all other love seems like hate. 

What makes God's love so distinctive? Why can't our own love for others be enough? For that matter, how do we discern God's love from our love? Isn't it all the same? One wonderful mysterious characteristic of the love of God is that we are not capable of containing it. When we love God this much, it spills over onto other people. We show people God's love, not our own love. Why should we respect our parents, bear burdens, serve others? We should do these things not because we love the people, but because we love God! Another amazing unfathomable characteristic of the love of God is that God's love never fails. Let's be honest with ourselves. There are times when we simply have no more love to give. Our bodies become tired, our minds fill with stress, bitterness, anger, and apathy. There are days when we just don't feel like loving anyone. But God's love never fails! It never runs out; there is always more love to be given. Finally, God's love is everything that everyone needs. Our love cannot save humanity from sin. Our love cannot restore creation. Our love cannot transform lives from the inside out. But oh, God's love... God's love can.

God's love. God's love. God's love. God is the only One that matters, because without reliance on His love, we will fail in all of our endeavors to bring him glory. We cannot love others without first coveting the love of Yahweh. So next time you worship, forget about the people standing next to you. Forget that the worship leader sang the wrong words to the second stanza. Forget that the guitarist has a new haircut. Forget that you're sick and your singing voice isn't up to par. Pray to Yahweh and ask Him to overwhelm you with love. Ask Him for a glimpse of glory. But beware; His love can be overwhelming. You may need to raise your hands. You may need to jump up and down. You may need to fall on your face. But it doesn't matter, because you've forgotten about the people standing next to you. It's just you, God, and His unending love.

"Your love never fails
It never gives up
It never runs out on me
Because on and on and on and on it goes
It overwhelmes and satisfies my soul"

-One Thing Remains, Jesus Culture

And the time flew.

For the past twenty-two days, I have been soaking in every moment of my third Christmas break as a college student. Tonight I went to watch my little brother's basketball game (and I use the term "little brother" lightly; my baby bro is now several inches taller than me and built like a man). Eight alumni from our high school, including myself, made an appearance at the game. One of them is now a teacher and the basketball coach at the opposing school. Another is married. One of our favorite teachers also holds a position at the other school; she attended the game as well, and a few of us stood in the gym talking to her long after the final buzzer sounded. Being so close to people from the past brought a strange sense of deja vu and nostalgia. It amazes me to think that it has been years since we were all together, and today we rarely contact one another. Yet all of us remain attached by those few years in high school together. We laughed over common memories, shared stories, and discussed our current endeavors. It occurred to me that the thread of familiarity we all felt was not only superficial, but rather the effects of our decisions and journeys years ago have affected one another now. 

And so I wonder - how do my choices today affect the people who are close to me? We may not stay friends forever, but we make an imprint on one another that will never fade. Every conversation, every step, and even every youtube link is another line in our life story that can never be unwritten. It is my desire to guide people always in the right direction, never the wrong. Because some things cannot just be undone. Here is my challenge to myself and to you: Lead others in the path of righteousness. Be a blessing to someone today. You never know how a small ripple on someone's life can lead to a huge wave of change.

As Elphaba wisely says... "So much of me is made from what I learned from you. You'll be with me like a hand print on my heart. And now whatever way our stories end, I know you have re-written mine by being my friend."

Don't wait to make a difference.