Loving as Christ Loved

We Christians like our feel good 'fixes'. We tithe, sing in the church choir, go on  mission trips, even serve in homeless shelters, but we often neglect one very vital ingredient - LOVE. 

God has been working in my heart a lot over this summer, in teaching me what real love is. And what it means to love. I posted a few weeks ago on what I was learning about love through studying I Corn. 13. And it has been an area God has continued to teach and challenge me in.

God has shown me the selfishness of my own heart - it's ugly. I realized how selfish I have been in "loving" people. I put out an effort to show people I cared, and to be honest I think I really did - because I wanted them to reciprocate. When that did not happen, the questions came. What was I doing wrong? Am I too quiet? Too slow in opening up to people?  I found myself frustrated and upset.

If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.  And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.  If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned,but have not love, I gain nothing. I Corinthians 13:1-3

Then God began showing me that I was loving for the wrong reason. I wanted to show myself as someone who genuinely cared, and could be trusted, but only under the condition that I received something back from them. If nothing came my way, I became upset. That is the opposite of how Christ taught His followers to love. He taught us to even love our enemies.

I began questioning my motives. Why do I love? Do I love expecting to receive something in return or do I love unconditionally, as Christ has loved me? These are questions I need to ask myself often.

I'm going to be honest here. It is hard work, draining, and exhausting to love without it being reciprocated. It's natural for us to desire love and acceptance. But real love comes into play when we love without being loved in return.

Our every effort is vain, unless it is done in LOVE. We are only able to show true love through the strength of God.

Breaking the Ruts

I know that it has been quite dead around here recently, but I have a few posts in the workings of my mind, so be watching for more posts soon. I plan to share some of what God has been teaching me over this summer.

I was privileged to spend two weeks of my summer at a Worldview training camp, called Summit . In many ways those were the hardest, yet the best two weeks of my life. Through God's working, I feel like I grew so much because of my time there.

I was challenged beyond what I've ever been before! An appetite in me was awakened to study more, dig deeper in search of truth, and share the truth in love. I came to realize how passive I've become; not putting my whole energy into God's service.  God has not redeemed me to sit idly, "waiting for His leading," I have been called to FIGHT!

"Passivity is a plague among Christians. It's not that we don't do anything; it's that we feel spiritual for doing nothing." - Kevin DeYoung, Just Do Something

Two of the lovely ladies, Katie and Katherine, who I went to Summit with, at Garden of the God's.