“All You Need Is Love”; “If You Say You Love Me”; “What the World Needs Now Is Love”; “I Just Called To Say I Love You.” Love songs are ageless. Long after their hit season, the words continue to be remembered. Everyone wants to be loved. Women love a good love story. In the core of your being you long for love. Because you were created in the image of love.
Once upon a time, there was a beautiful love story. You were the delightful daughter. He was the loving Father. A villain entered the story and whisked you away. He told you lies about who you were. He tried to distort your beautiful love story. But the rescuer came and rescued you back. Now you are His.
In the beginning, you were created for love. You were created in love. You were brought here to be loved. At the very core of your existence you are the object of His great love. Your life is the greatest love story ever told.
In the beginning God created, for love. It was the love of the Father that made all that we see each day. He had you in mind when He formed the earth. He made it for you. The beauty of the mountains, the depths of the sea, the blue skies that never end, beautiful sunrises and sunsets are all offerings of His love. But you, dear one, are His masterpiece.
Do you know how deeply you are loved? It is for your heart that He comes. In the beginning, in the shadow of the Trinity, you were created. All He has ever wanted was to love you. Are you comfortable in His embrace?
Many years of my life were spent seeking to be loved. I didn’t understand that I was wanted and pursued. All I knew was that I wanted to be enough, and do enough, to be an acceptable gift to Him. My efforts and what I believed about myself held me back from fully entering into love.
Love at its core is a gift. It’s not love if it has to be earned. It must be received. Earning holds us back from the full embrace. Many live as the older son in the prodigal son story, hoping somehow that their hard work will help them to be pleasing enough to enter in.
How does the mind grasp it all? How does one move forward to receive that gift that seems so costly? Shouldn’t they have to do something to pay Him back? Shouldn’t it cost them something? He just wants me. He just wants you.
He invites you in. He relentlessly pursues you with His love. He does not see you as you see yourself. He sees you in the light of who He created you to be. He dances over you. He sings over you. He is enthralled with your beauty. In the stillness of His embrace, you discover His life. It is that “be still and know I am God” place, where His work is enough and you can stop yours. His life begins to be offered through you, showing you the things that matter. He doesn’t want what you can do to earn His love, He just wants you.
God is all about relationship. Relationship is about response. He has no expectations on you. His expectations were fulfilled by Christ. Because He has no expectations on you, you never disappoint Him. Can you grasp that? You are never a disappointment to God.
You have been lied to. He loved you first. You are here on this earth because He loves you. It was love that formed you and brought you here. From the moment He laid eyes on you, He has been pursuing you. He waits to love you. It’s not you that invites Him into your life, He invites you into His. Do you know that He moved heaven and earth to come to you personally, individually, by name?
What holds you back from entering in to be loved? He has thought of you for a long time. He has known you for a lifetime. Will you let Him love you just as you are? That is the invitation.
Zephaniah 3:17 The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save.He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing."
12 comments:
What a beautiful post, Julie! Thank you for such a wonderful reminder of His love.
I'm not even sure why this resonates so strongly with me this morning, but it has. A while back I read, "The Divine Romance" by Gene Edwards. It is the tale of this, the greatest of all love stories. I fought tears through most of it. I didn't know that God felt that way about me. I think this post is hitting the same, wonderful, nerve. Sometimes, some days, it seems too much to hope for, to believe. And yet, it is true.
Gotta get a tissue. Great job Julie!
Beautifully said. I so relate to every thought here. My heart echoes love.
God's love is constant, it hunts us down and captures us. Once captured, we find our true meaning. Hidden and embraced by love.
Excellent devo. Loved it. Danced inside as I read your heart, Julie. I feel the same way. Want all to know His love...
Such a wonderful message! Thank you!
This is what I have trouble grasping - God's love for me. How does it get from your head to your heart?
Julie Anne
Jammy,
I don't know if you will come back to this post, but I wanted to try and answer this for you. I would love to be able to hear more of your heart and journey.
But since I don't know, I will tell you how it moved into my understanding. It all began with a desire to know and believe. There came a point where I had to choose to believe what God was saying to me. His Word is full of the affirmations of His love. There came a point where I had to believe....that it could be true.
I began to ask Him to teach me how to believe.
I had what I call a "Cinderella syndrome". I thought I was the child He got because I wanted Him. So I did not start knowing I was loved. I knew God loved....the world....but me. That was a totally different story. I didn't know how to know that.
I asked Him to plant a seed of love in my heart that I might know I was loved by Him. He did the rest. When He began to speak to me I chose to believe it was true.
Remember God doesn't see you the way you see yourself. That is the problem. It's how we view ourselves, and therefore judge how God and others view us.
Just tell Him you want to believe....and listen, then choose to believe what He says.
I would be happy to dialogue with you further.
Go to my blog, www.jewelsightings.blogspot.com and leave your email if you want and I will email you.
He does love you....so tenderly, so deeply. There is nothing He wants more than for you to know how deeply you are loved.
Hugs,
Julie
Julie,
this message came at such the right time! It is a lesson that I have to learn over and over again, I am ashamed to say. Fortunately, our God is so patient. He lovingly reminds me that I was made for HIs love. Again. And again. And again.
Love to you,
Laura
Julie... I love the verse from Zephaniah... its beautiful.... God is Love and in its truest form. He is the perfect example of Love too.
Thanks for sharing your heart with us
Lisa
"He does not see you as you see yourself." Thank God, literally for that. Beyond my scope of thinking is an amazing, loving, tender God who waits for me. For ME! So hard to fathom.
Beautiful words, my friend.
Hugs and more hugs. xxxooogretchen
Thank you for such a beautiful post that has come at such a perfect time. I am saddend by my sisters mental illness and this post has strapped me with something powerful to pass on to her at such a time as this.....
Julie,
This is one of the most beautiful articles you have written. God's love is what makes life worth living...His love is what carries me through the wind, the rain, and the fiery trials.
1 John 4:16
And so we know and rely on the LOVE God has for us. GOD IS LOVE.
Love you much!
Amy
Julie,
It is like you wrote this just for me! Okay, I know you didn't...there are so many of us who struggle with this area!
Am I comfortable in His embrace? Honestly, no. It is like I am afraid as I am close to Him, that all of my flaws are a disappointment and a bother to Him. I know in my head (as Jammy said) that isn't true, but my heart just doesn't grasp it.
You had asked me how you could pray for me. Please pray that I would rest in His love for me. It is so funny that I didn't get to come by until this morning to read this. My post from right before I went to bed last night was on needing to "be still".
Thank you for writing this post. I am going to print this out and stick it in my Bible. I need to read it a few more times. :)
You are a blessing!
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