Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love. We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. 1 John 4:7–8, 16
God is love … This is what really struck me as I continued to meditate on this tiny little verse. If I really believe God is love then I will have to embrace the fact that whatever He does in my life or allows is motivated by His love. What happens to me may not be about me at all, but it is quite possible that it is to show God’s love and compassion to those around me.
This is really huge! That means all the awesome things like grandchildren (Alex and Luci), material and spiritual blessings, etc. are because God loves me. At the same times the difficulties, suffering and trials I go through are also motivated by God’s love. Remember this is the kind of love that has my highest good in mind. My struggles are not meant to destroy me but to conform me into His image. It is often when under pressure that flesh is revealed and is an opportunity to deal with it.
If I totally embrace the fact that nothing comes into my life that God in His love hasn’t allowed, I could turn my family, my church and my community on its ear!
Who knew that such a tiny little, simple verse God is love, could be so profound?
To view God is Love, Part 1 click here — > http://bit.ly/MjRo3d
Question: How will understanding that God is love and that everything He allows in your life is motivated by His love impact your life and change the way you look at things?
I would love to hear what you have to say, leave a comment and let’s start a conversation.
I think this is where real joy will enter our hearts and others can see it! Not the happy feeling we sometimes associate with joy but the deep sense of knowing nothing happens without God’s purpose attached to it. I sometimes struggle to understand and confess that my flesh asks “why” when trials come. Lately, God has been teaching me (experiential kind) that trials produce endurance and has a perfect result. And when I read this post, what stood out is that our blessings and trails may not be for us at all but others. It is an opportunity for our God to show His love and compassion to someone within my sphere of influence. My understanding of the fact that God is love makes me ponder not “why” but “who”.
Asking “Why” is a normal response. You are absolutely correct, trials produce endurance and strengtehn us. They are like “quizzes” teachers give, designed to show us where we are in our learning experience. Unforutnately often I learn I may “Know” alot but when I have opportunity to put into action what I “Know” I fail the quiz and have to do a make up test.
We can be so myoptic that our first response is to always go to “Me” first rather than realize God has a bigger picture in mind. (See God is Love, Part 1)
Great pondering – Who?
Thanks for joining in the conversation. I hope you come by again and join in.
I believe that some of our issues with embracing difficulty as the LOVE of God is because our culture has defined love as something that is always “pleasant”. However, sometimes love is hard and disciplines. Sometimes, the most loving thing isn’t the easy thing or the comfortable thing. When I step back and look at life through the lense of “what is the most loving thing?” and then through the understanding that Love isn’t always pleasant-but is always good (because LOVE IS GOD) it helps me to embrace all things filtered through God’s hands of love-pleasant or uncomfortable-as GOOD and from God.
Christy you are absolutely correct, especially in the US. Our culture doesn’t even allow our children to suffer in the name of love. The lessons we learned early when we weren’t picked on the playground, or didn’t make tryouts or even when disciplined/grounded etc by our parents enabled us to understand this principle so that later in life we were able to remember we were loved in the midst of the most difficult of situations.
Unfortunately it effects the church as well. We are labeled as:unkind, unloving etc when we speak hard things or even disagree with people, when we simply love them and have their highest good in mind. That is why it is so important to study the Word and for the older to teach the younger life principles like this based on the Word. This is why I write :)
Thanks so much for dropping by and giving your input. Love the conversation and looking forward to future conversations.
Makes me understand better what it is to have a grateful heart-so thankful that He is so intimately God-knows me thoroughly so that my greatest good is the “why” answer. I can’t really get hold of it sometimes-
Sharon it is hard to get hold of. Sometimes I wonder when things are so simple, like God is love, we make it harder than it really is.
Thanks for dropping by and adding to the conversation. Look forward to you coming back