“He is jealous for me,One of the greatest struggles in my life is figuring out how to take the deep love I have in my heart for those around me, those closest to me, and letting them clearly see my love for them. Love can get hidden underneath the need to show strength, or discipline or the desire to give an appearance that everything is under control. Love is not about the hidden; it is about a bold yet vulnerable openness to giving all that is me. All God asks me to do is Love. When I step aside, put away my pretense, God’s Love can shine with the brightness and warmth of a thousand suns.
Loves like a hurricane, I am a tree,
Bending beneath the weight of His wind and mercy.”
“When all of a sudden,This is a song that I actually did not like very much the first time I heard it. David Crowder’s voice is maybe a little bit of an acquired taste; at least it was for me. Part of me coming to love this song was my daughter Maddy telling me how much she loved it and what it meant to her. The lyric “If grace His grace is an ocean, we’re all sinking” as well as “bending beneath the weight…” speak deeply to her. This caused me to listen with new ears. The song and David’s voice has become a bright and clear beacon in the cacophony of noise I hear every day. The lyrics and melody stand strong and sure, bringing a simple yet powerful message of God’s love for us (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GzfPHnoT0-0).
I am unaware of these afflictions eclipsed by glory,
And I realize just how beautiful You are,
And how great Your affections are for me.”
How does God show His love for us? If we’re not careful, we can tend to view God through the lens of His judgment and power. We can think He only loves us when we are good enough, do the right things, or make the choices that He sees as honoring Him. But this is not how God’s love for us works. It is there no matter what.
“And we are His portion and He is our prize,Today, Good Friday, we will remember the arrest, torture, crucifixion and death of our Savior. How much does God love us?
Drawn to redemption by the grace in His eyes,
If his grace is an ocean, we're all sinking.”
“For God so loved the world that he gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.” (John 3:16-17)For any of us who have children, although not a pleasant concept to consider, I am sure our love for them would gladly permit us to offer our own lives in lieu of theirs. If faced with the choice of laying down our own life for the life of a child, the decision is quick and easy; without a second thought, we’d chose losing our own life as opposed to one of theirs. This is love.
“And Heaven meets earth like an unforeseen kiss,
And my heart turns violently inside of my chest,
I don't have time to maintain these regrets,
When I think about the way He loves us”
But, if asked, would you offer up the life of your child so that someone else could live? Someone who is completely unworthy of living? The greatest criminal, the most abject sinner, a person filled with hate, a soul that has rejected love; would you let your child die so that this person could live?
How much does God love us? He did exactly that. He sent His own Son to die so that we…unworthy of such Love…could live and live a life eternal with Him. This is Love.
“He loves us,So today, as Christ hangs on the cross, as someone who did not deserve to be beaten, dragged and humiliated is pushed through this pain, realize why it happened. It did not happen for some esoteric concept of sacrifice or meaningless end to a meaningful life. It happened for one reason: Love. Be filled with the knowledge that you are loved beyond measure, then, now and forever. He Loves.
Oh, how He loves us,
Oh, how He loves us,
Oh, how He loves.
Yeah, He loves us,
Oh, how He loves us,
Oh, how He loves us,
Oh, how He loves.”
No comments:
Post a Comment