Love:

Before I get started with cleaning and doing laundry, I really want to write a little about "love".

We always hear about how God is love, but do we really believe it? And what does it mean to "be" love?

I believe that Jesus is Love. He lived on earth to show Gods Love. His Love is a love we cannot even begin to fathom. Love is part of the foundation of faith, in my opinion. 1 Corinthians 13:1-3 (New International Version) says:

"If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing."

I take this to mean, what good is anything without Love? And the Love I'm talking about isn't romantic love, although that kind of love is important as well. I'm talking about LOVE. Love for God, Love for friends and family, Love for life.

Romans 12:1 (The Message) says:

"Take your everyday, ordinary life - your sleeping, eating, going-to-work and walking-around life - and place it before God as an offering."

Use these daily, run-of-the-mill, routine things to Love on people! Show people the Joy you have from loving someone (Jesus) who loves you back! You may be the only witness of Christ some people have ever or will ever see.

I'm sure most of us have heard this in some form or another, but 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 (NIV) says:

"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres."

I love this verse! It encompasses exactly how I want to live my life. It is exactly how I want to Love on people. When I am remembered, I want people to say "Sarah was patient and kind. She wasn't envious, boastful or proud. She was not rude, self centered or easily angered. She didn't hold grudges."

Now, while I believe that rules are important (those of you that know me, know I really like rules and boundaries), I don't believe that God "rules" through rules and regulations. He gave us rules (guidelines, commandments and a "Handbook"), but He also gave us free will and that free will includes the choice to follow or not follow those rules. Salvation isn't determined by rules.

"Heresy!" you may be shouting from your computer chair. Stay with me here. Hear me out. God also gave us the greatest example of Love we have ever seen: Jesus. I believe when your heart is in the right place, you want to follow the previously mentioned rules. Lots of people, Christians included, believe that you cannot be a Christian if you do not follow the rules set by God. Where in the Handbook (aka Bible) does it say "if you don't follow the rules, you're out of Heaven"? John 14:6 says:

"Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."

 Jesus didn't say "You can achieve salvation by praying daily, going to church on Sundays and following all of the rules." There is ONE way into Heaven, and Jesus is it. Later in the same chapter, verse 23, Jesus says:

"If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching."

 What was that word? Loves?? God will never force us to do anything. We will always have the choice. A deep love for Him will override our sinful nature and we will want to follow the rules He has set. This doesn't mean we won't mess up. I mess up all of the time. It's ridiculous how often I fall (or jump) off the "God wagon". But Jesus still loves me.

Here is my point: Jesus does not love conditionally. He will love you even if you smoke, drink, have tattoos and piercings, have sex outside of marriage, run red lights, sleep in on Sundays, lie to your boss and take a "sick" day, skip class, overdraft your bank account. He doesn't care if your car is clean or if your lawn is watered. His Love is unconditional, even when you keep making the same mistakes over and over again. He only asks that you really, truly Love Him.

Geez. That took me longer than I expected! And I feel like I'm missing a few points somewhere in there. If anyone has any thoughts, let me know! Leave a comment or send me a message or something.