I was reading the book of Acts this morning and thought, “I wish I could love God as passionately as Paul did.” Almost immediately, I heard the Lord say, “You do!” And I thought, “What? There’s no way I do!”
If you’re like me and you feel like you come up short when measured against the great saints of old, take heart. Your ability to love God passionately isn’t all about you. Like everything else in this life of faith, it’s all about what He’s done for you.
He started it
He’s the one who initiated a relationship with you.
When You said, ‘Seek My face,’ My heart said to You, ‘Your face, LORD, I will seek.”
Psalm 27:8
And He didn’t just start the relationship, He’s also the one keeping the love fires burning.
Love’s flames are flames of fire, flames that come from the LORD.
Song of Sol. 8:6*
And this is where we get it wrong: We assume that to keep a passionate relationship going with Him we’ve got to do all the work. If we don’t fuel the fire and keep it stoked, it will burn out and God will be disappointed in us. But it’s not like that at all. He didn’t just start the fire, He IS the fire! And His love flame for you can never be quenched because He IS love.
Raging water cannot extinguish love, and rivers will never wash it away.
Song of Sol. 8:7*
When you feel “less than” some other saint, remember that He created you as a “one and only.” To Him you are a sparkling and unique gem. When He looks at you He isn’t dissatisfied, disappointed, or disheartened. He burns with love for you, and your job in this love relationship is simply to soak up His love. When you do, you’ll naturally want to serve and obey Him (John 14:15).
When you say, “I haven’t done enough. I’m not good enough. I must be a disappointment to You, Lord.” He answers, “Look at you! You are beautiful, my true love! Look at you! You are so beautiful! (Song of Sol. 1:15*).
Whose version of the love story will you believe today?
*GOD’S WORD® is a copyrighted work of God’s Word to the Nations. Quotations are used by permission. Copyright 1995 by God’s Word to the Nations. All rights reserved.
It’s so wonderful to know that it all begins with Jesus’ love for us, and that His love keeps us and takes us through life and into the next life! His love never fails! Thank you for such wonderful insights into God’s character and His grace.