Look with wonder at the depth of the Father’s marvelous love that he has lavished on us! He has called us and made us his very own beloved children.
1 John 3:1 TPT
Today, as I headed out to do my daily work duties, I felt a strong tug in my spirit to pray and commune with Abba. I assumed this would be more of a time of interceding for the nation, my family, and other circumstances around the globe.
I turned my Bluetooth to a preset musical selection set and began praying. Almost immediately, I began to sense Abba’s overwhelming love for me. Foolishly, I tried to shake the sense of love because of my intellectual need to pray and intercede for the world’s needs. But, gratefully, the weight of his love for me was overwhelming.
Under this sensation, I began to weep quietly in His love for me. While I have always believed He loved me, this is one of the few times I truly felt engulfed by His love for me. Not just His love, but His love for me.
That may not make sense to you. It didn’t make much sense to me initially, but God began to tell me that His lavish love for me is simply because He loves me. It doesn’t change. It is always the same.
Having grown up in churchianty, I had a performance mentality. God loved me based on my performance. When I performed well, He was happy with me and showed his love toward me as approval. However, I must miserably crawl across broken glass when I failed him to gain his forgiveness and acceptance.
As I sat in the presence of Love today, I realized that my performance of late had been less than stellar. I had been sick with flu-like symptoms for a few days and had been somewhat crabby. I knew I could not have been very pleasing to him over the last few days.
Almost as that thought approached the front of my mind, another wave of His love flowed over me, and I began to weep more. It was astounding that I could sense this intense love for me, even though I had not gone to the throne with my list of confessions and acts of repentance. How was it possible that He loved me in my condition?
Almost immediately, a picture of Jesus washing the disciples’ feet came to mind. Jesus lavishly poured out loving affection for his friends—not just His students, followers, or disciples, but His friends. Peter said, Lord, you can’t wash my feet; I’m too unclean.
At that moment, I realized I was acting like Peter. Abba, I can’t accept your love. I’m dirty. I’ve failed you. I’ve sinned.
Jesus’ response to Peter was simple. You either accept my demonstration of love toward you or will have nothing to do with me.
Was I turning away this amazing love because of my self-righteous, foolish, religious attitude and pride?
The great love of Abba has nothing to do with my behavior, attitudes, actions, or inactions. His love for me never changes, never declines, and N-E-V-E-R increases. It does not change–EVER.
His love for me has nothing to do with me. It has everything to do with Him. That bears repeating…His love for me has nothing to do with me. It has everything to do with Him.
As I understand His grace and his total disdain for performance religianity, I am beginning to understand this has very little to do with me and everything to do with Him.
We are to be transformed into His image.
I have always heard, thought, and been taught that being transformed into His image means working hard to be a better Christian so I can act more like God. That makes perfect sense in performance-based religianity, and that fits perfectly with the twisted Christian message of “Just try harder.”
But in light of today’s experience, my transformation has very little to do with what I do and much more with how I look like him.
I recently saw a TV show that commented on couples who have been together for a long time. These couples begin to look like each other, take on each other’s characteristics, and even have some of the same wrinkles.
I don’t think any wife has ever worked to try to wrinkle like their husband, but it happens just by being near them for years.
My transformation into his image is simply him shining his image on me. As he lavishes his love on me and shines his love on me, I become more like him without even trying.
Today, I learned a lesson. I may have to learn it repeatedly. Actually, I’m pretty certain I will have to, but at least I started a new chapter today. He loves me with a marvelous love. It’s a love more fantastic than any sin, failure, or fault.
And there is NOTHING I can do to stop it. I cannot change His love for me. He loves me. He really loves me. And He really loves you too.
