As much as the formation happening in my heart is between God and I, there is the observation that God himself made, “It is not good for man to be alone!!” God has created us in his image which includes many things. One of those things is that Father, Son and Holy Spirit have existed eternally together as one.
While this post is not meant to explain the trinity is does point us to the importance of life together.
Now that togetherness for us as humans is tainted with sins committed by us and to us which complicates the matter significantly. The walking wounded can find healing and live out a redeemed story or find themselves … myself in a story where I’m perpetually left out. Rejecting my self before others tell the story I fundamentally believe about myself. My imagination begins to have the force of a reality that isn’t real, except in my head.
Being wounded creates a guarded heart or self-reliance as a reaction. Why put myself in that situation ever again?
A useful part of that story is learning to cultivate a relationship with the God whose steadfast love toward us isn’t just words but action. Jesus love for you and I extends to his own willingness to endure the cross for our blessing, reconciling us to himself and adopting us as his child.
This earth shattering event of love expressed toward me is now a driving cause of repeating this act toward others.
We are to be rooted in Christ and his love. But that love invites us to risk. Rich Mullins has a quote about this kind of love…
“God has called us to be lovers, and we frequently think that He meant us to be saviours. So we ‘love’ as long as we see ‘results.’ We give of ourselves as long as our investments pay off, but if the ones we love do not respond, we tend to despair and blame ourselves and even resent those we pretend to love. Because we love someone, we want them to be free of addictions, of sin, of self – and that is as it should be. But it might be that our love for them and our desire for their well-being will not make them well. And, if that is the case, their lack of response no more negates the reality of love than their quickness to respond would confirm it.”
Loving well is a risk that God knows about all too well. When you and I move into that realm of risky love, may the rejection we might feel never steal away the chance to risk again. The ability to do that comes from a life drenched in Gods love for us, a cup running over… an easy share with the world.
Truth, Grace, and Time 