The more I spend time talking to you and reading your Word, the more I fall in love with you. Your love is steadfast, comforting, and sacrificial. You died on the cross to take my punishment, knowing you would gain nothing in return. Father, you didn't need me, but somehow you wanted me anyway even with all my baggage that comes along. People don't love like that -- they give only when they benefit from it. People let me down, but you will never leave me or forsake me.
Lord, you created me. You chose me before the beginning of time to be your child. You chose to mold me to become more like you. You hand-picked me to be your vessel. Your broken vessel so that in my lacking heart, you could complete it. Father, you chose to use my life to glorify your name. I am overwhelmed by the constant grace you pour over me.
Because you first loved me, now I have the freedom to love. You have given me the power to move beyond self-seeking love and display a patient, kind, selfless, humble, forgiving, trusting, and unfailing love (1 Corinthians 13). Lord, I want to show my love for you in return for all the things you have done for me, not that it will ever equate to what you did for me on the cross.
In this verse, you tell me that love = obedience: "And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love." (2 John 1:6) Saying "I love you, God" is one thing, but showing it is so much more powerful. If you call me to speak, I will speak. If you tell me to me to move, I will move. If you command me to be still, I will be still.
I can't remember where I heard this from, but it really impacted the way I view loving You: There is one difference between loving God and being in love with Him. Loving God is loving what he does. But being in love with Him is wanting to be more like Him. The latter is so much deeper -- and that is what I long for.
So, Lord, mold me to become more like You as I fall more in love with You. During your time on Earth, you lived completely different from the world. Well, the world hasn't changed much since then. I know that as I become more like you, I will become much less like the world. But I choose it anyway. I choose to follow the one who showed me sacrificial love on the cross rather than the one who "loves" for their own benefit. I choose to be obedient to the God who cares deeply for my soul, rather than obey the world that doesn't even know my name. I choose to chase after you, even if it means running against the world. That is why I choose boldness. I choose to be BOLD for you.
- Savannah Brooke
What do you choose -- boldly stand out from the world or mindlessly follow its unfulfilling ways? So often our sinful nature says something different than what our heart longs to say. I struggle with this just as much as the next person. Let me know your thoughts in the comments!
