Dear Friends,
Today as I was simply praying and talking to the Lord, something deeply struck me. If someone were to ask me why I love Jesus, it would be easy or tempting to start naming characteristics or traits. Yet, for me, I love Him for who He is.
There are not certain traits I can simply point out. I love because I have experienced Him. I’ve experienced His heart; and He has linked my heart to His. He is deep inside. If I just started naming traits there would probably be ones that I am not keen on - like His discipline or His wrath. But I realized this morning that true relational love is not about good character traits; not what we have done or built up or the things that are "likeable." Real relational love admires a package deal and recognizes a human as fearfully and wonderfully made. If any friend would ask me, why do you love me? it would be a daunting question; even for the closest ones. The temptation would be to say, oh because you are this or that. But I can honestly say that my answer would most likely be, because of who you are.
I love the whole package of Christ and am called to love the package of a person. The wounds on Christ’s hands and feet make Him the most beautiful of all. Of course things can annoy me or challenge me with anyone. But somewhere inside, when that challenge comes, I stand back, view the landscape from the perspective of my Creator and settle into the full value proposition and simply say, thank you Lord.
Sometimes the wounds of a person, when healed by the hands of God, are what draws out the most beauty. Today I settle into the entirety of the value proposition of God and thank Him for wiring me perfectly for His purpose. We are fearfully and wonderfully made - and so are all the others.
Love,
Cari