Throughout my life, I've read many love stories. (The "star crossed" lovers of Romeo and Juliet.) I've seen many chick flicks. (The Notebook, P.S. I love you.) And I'm pretty sure I've read some gushy love poems here and there, as well. But lately, God has shown me that none of these love stories can fathom to what Our Substitute (Jesus) did for every single one of us. It's truly indescribable love that none of us will ever, ever be able to understand 100%, but it's such an honor to say that we know a part of this remarkable love, isn't it?
After reading a book titled Crazy Love (incredible read btw!), I was deeply convicted of not truly understanding the main values and points of love. Francis Chan, the author, brings up the most widely known love chapter of the Bible (1 Corinthians 13) to portray to his readers how we aren't truly loving. On how this world is full of hate. To show the perfection of Jesus, and the imperfection of mankind. And truly, at least through my eyes, he did a tremendous job of making me feel like crap. Which is a good thing for all of us to feel like time and again.
But in the book Crazy Love, Chan makes all of his readers put down his book and go to Scripture and read 1 Corinthians 13:4-7....
4)Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud, 5)It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6)Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7)It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
He then challenges his readers to do an exercise with these verses, taking wherever it says Love and replacing it with your name. (So for me "Greg is patient... etc.) Do it!
Convicting and farely powerful, huh? As Chan puts it, don't you feel like a liar? If we are meant to represent what love is on His earth to each other and to Him, do we think we are failing to love people the way He truly wants us to love? I know for a fact that I am not all the time patient and kind. I know for a fact that I am sometimes easily angered, self-seeking, and boastful. And I know for a fact that I don't always trust, I don't always hope, and I don't always persevere. To me, this shows the remarkable and indescribable actions of Jesus. Because the word became flesh, Jesus was a perfect human representation of 1 Corinthians 13:4.
Jesus is patient and kind. Jesus does not envy or boast; Jesus is not arrogant or rude....
You see why this is so convicting? Following Christ isn't something that can be done halfheartedly or on the side. It is not a label we can display when it is useful. It must be central to everything we and are. He must be in the center of our circle of life, or else our circle of life turns into a circle of death.
We all fall short of God's love, but the only way to get anywhere close to the love that the Bible mentions is through Jesus...
This is the only way we can truly love. I hope you understand why none of the other love stories is any match to the story of Jesus and 1 Corinthians 13.
Much Love,
Greg
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Granted
Friday, January 16, 2009
Whether we realize it or not, all of us take something for granted every single day. We become complacent with familiarity, and usually live the rest of our lives in complacency after that. It's sad. While all of us here in the United States are living in terrific houses with terrific family and friends, children in Africa and Asia are dying from an array of diseases. Sometimes I just wish the world would balance itself financially and everyone would be living in the same circumstances, rather than having people living in the extremes.Recently, I've noticed myself becoming sad, realizing that I have it a lot better then a lot of other people do. I hate it, really, and I wish I could just reach out and help. All of us need to learn how to appreciate life in every way, every second. Life for me here in Roanoke is better than 99% of the worlds population. We have it great.We have it too great, because we honestly don't deserve it. Man kind is dirty-rotten to the core, and planet earth is in a battle to survive. We need to stop and contemplate of what's going on around us. And while we do it, maybe we can stop taking things for granted every single day, and try to live life to the fullest. Think about it. If everyone attempted to live life to the fullest just one day, our world would be on the verge back to normalcy. We would be close to living, rather than surviving.Recently, I've made it my goal to appreciate everything that comes my way, and not take the basic things for granted....I appreciate my family. My friends. The ability to walk. And run. The ability to breathe and have a beating heart. I appreciate animals. Pets. The outdoors. The sun, and the stars. The house I live in. The clothes I'm wearing. The laptop I'm using. The bed I sleep in. I appreiciate the ability to love. The new people I get to meet. The car I drive. The TV I use. The ability to play sports. To play basketball. The list goes on and on and on and on....Most of us don't even think of these things on a daily basis. But what would happen to our lives if we didn't have these things? Think about the condition you would be in. Yea, not good. So please, try to make your goal to care and to appreciate, rather than taking some of the most amazing things in life for granted.
Much Love,
Greg
Whether we realize it or not, all of us take something for granted every single day. We become complacent with familiarity, and usually live the rest of our lives in complacency after that. It's sad. While all of us here in the United States are living in terrific houses with terrific family and friends, children in Africa and Asia are dying from an array of diseases. Sometimes I just wish the world would balance itself financially and everyone would be living in the same circumstances, rather than having people living in the extremes.Recently, I've noticed myself becoming sad, realizing that I have it a lot better then a lot of other people do. I hate it, really, and I wish I could just reach out and help. All of us need to learn how to appreciate life in every way, every second. Life for me here in Roanoke is better than 99% of the worlds population. We have it great.We have it too great, because we honestly don't deserve it. Man kind is dirty-rotten to the core, and planet earth is in a battle to survive. We need to stop and contemplate of what's going on around us. And while we do it, maybe we can stop taking things for granted every single day, and try to live life to the fullest. Think about it. If everyone attempted to live life to the fullest just one day, our world would be on the verge back to normalcy. We would be close to living, rather than surviving.Recently, I've made it my goal to appreciate everything that comes my way, and not take the basic things for granted....I appreciate my family. My friends. The ability to walk. And run. The ability to breathe and have a beating heart. I appreciate animals. Pets. The outdoors. The sun, and the stars. The house I live in. The clothes I'm wearing. The laptop I'm using. The bed I sleep in. I appreiciate the ability to love. The new people I get to meet. The car I drive. The TV I use. The ability to play sports. To play basketball. The list goes on and on and on and on....Most of us don't even think of these things on a daily basis. But what would happen to our lives if we didn't have these things? Think about the condition you would be in. Yea, not good. So please, try to make your goal to care and to appreciate, rather than taking some of the most amazing things in life for granted.
Much Love,
Greg
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