THANKFUL

Chatting with Jesus

Wednesday, April 3, 2024

Lord, when you created us in your image, we inherited two of your most prominent attributes—the desire to love, and the desire to be loved. You placed these needs within every person’s heart, but sadly, in many cultures and societies, early on, these godly desires are replaced with the devil’s attributes, hatred and bigotry. Often, people hate and cannot explain why. These dysfunctional curses pass from generation to generation, without changing.

However, your Word declares you, Lord God, are love:

 “Let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is a child of God and knows God. But anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love” (1 John 4:7–8 NLT).

For many Christ followers, this mandate to love one another presents our biggest challenge. Despite our best efforts, some folks are simply hard to love. Why do you always bring them across our path, Lord? Their arrogance, sense of elitism, or intellectual snobbery becomes annoying. Is it only a façade for their heart’s emptiness? Fear of rejection? Or are they soulless and evil? We cannot climb into their heads, but you know their hurt, Lord.

Your Holy Spirit moved upon Christian author Diane Chandler to wright this truth: “I have come to understand the greatest disability in life is to be unloved.” No wonder we’re a mess. But even the worst among us are loved.

 “God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him … since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other” (1 John 4:10–11 NLT).

Lord, we need your eyes to see and to love others as you do. Teach us your ways.

Amen, Jesus.