John 13:34-35
“And so I am giving a new
commandment to you now—love each other just as much as I love you. Your
strong love for each other will prove to the world that you are my
disciples.”
The Living
Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission
of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All
rights reserved.
Greg and I have a front-row seat for
observing sibling rivalry in action! Zola had a day off from school
recently, so she came with Nathan to our house while their parents
worked. Nathan was in a “snit” about it all day long. He did NOT want
to share us with his sister. When I poured “shoklit” milk for lunch, he
had a fit because that was “his” milk and Zola was not to have any. I
assured him that I had plenty for both of them. “But it’s MINE!” he
tearfully insisted.
By contrast, Zola had come to our house to
spend the night about a week ago, and she was totally “in the zone” when
she arrived…so much that she would not even look up at her dad and
Timothy and tell them “Good-bye” as they left. So Timothy took matters
into his own hands, walked over to Zola, cupped her face in his little
hands and planted a big kiss on her forehead - and told her to have a
good time!
Here’s where I am going with these illustrations…1)
when it comes to God’s love, we do not have a “corner on the market;”
and 2) we cannot pick and choose who we love – or how and when.
We are commanded to love others as God loves us. And God loves each one of us
– the good, the bad, and the ugly! He doesn’t love Joe more than
Bill…He doesn’t provide for the needs of Sue and not Betty. God doesn’t
have a fridge full of “shoklit milk” for Nick and refuse to share any
with Nora! God’s gifts of love, forgiveness, grace, mercy, healing,
wisdom, and so much more are available to each and every one of us.
If
we want to enjoy God’s love and blessings, we have to be willing to
share them with others…and we must be ready to treat them as God treats
us. So this means that we have to not only be willing to “plant a kiss
on the forehead” of a brother or sister in Christ who might not deserve
it…we have to watch and listen for needs that must be met. We have to
be alert to joys and heartaches that should be recognized…to
insecurities and problems that we cannot even begin to imagine that
cause people to behave in a sometimes off-putting manner. We have to
understand that God loves each of us, warts and all…and we are supposed
to do the same. Does this mean that we have to be “best buds” with
someone who rubs us the wrong way? Absolutely not! But we must learn
to look at that person as God sees him/her…and to remind ourselves that
WE have idiosyncrasies, too!
I will be honest…when I was younger,
I saw a lot of people through the “lenses” of older adults – my parents
and grandparents, teachers, adult church members and pastors. I judged
a lot of people based on the opinions of these people and those of my
peers. And I “loved” accordingly. In doing this, I almost missed out
on some really lovely friendships and relationships. Kids who we
thought were “weird” or “crazy” might have simply been too intellectual
and “nerdy” for us at the time – but they were - and are - great people.
Others,
we liked or disliked merely because those in our circle felt this way.
And this had consequences – both good and bad, depending on the
circumstances. Ultimately, we often failed to recognize that each
person, no matter how much he/she irritates us, is precious to God. I
still struggle with this in many instances. It is hard for me to accept
that God loves some persons I consider pretty despicable, like those
who murder, rape, and abuse or molest people and animals.
I
wrestle with kindness toward those whose minds are closed - who want to
discriminate against people of other races, ethnic backgrounds,
religious preferences, sexual orientations, and more…particularly when
they tout their views on these people as “Gospel” and try to set
themselves apart – and above – the other guy. I want to scream when I
hear “Christians” denounce the ideas and opinions of those who disagree
with them – on any subject – and declare that they are “right” and
others are “wrong”…then use whatever measures they deem necessary to
prove their point, including the suggestion that certain people should
be exiled, jailed, or even killed for their opinions.
And yet…I
love Jesus more than life itself. I am “all in” with Him…so I must love
ALL of God’s children and treat them as Jesus would…with grace, mercy,
humility, forgiveness, compassion and kindness. I must meet their needs
as God directs…I must “feed His sheep” - even the unlovable ones.
I
will not sugarcoat this - it’s hard work! But if we want to be like
Jesus, we have to be like Jesus in everything…and toward everyone. We
have to “share our shoklit milk” and be the one to take the first step,
cup another person’s face in our hands and plant a kiss on their
forehead – and let them know, “I care about you regardless of who you
are or how you act. I love you with the love of Christ anyway!” Have
you committed to Jesus enough to do this? Will this be the day that you
begin?
© Debbie Robus
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