Sacrificial Love

During my bible study this morning, I was reminded of what love is from God's perspective.
God has called us to love even when:

• we don't want to
• we don't feel like it
• we get nothing obvious in return
• they don't deserve it
• they're not worth it
• they don't even know it
• it makes no difference

In contrast, the world entices us to love only when

• we want to
• we feel like it (this is getting too hard; I'll move on now)
• when we get something back (I'll scratch your back if you scratch mine)
• someone deserves our love (Look what they did to me--forget them!)
• if they are worthy of it
• they acknowledge it
• it seems to make a difference

Love from the world's perspective has one common denominator: me, me, me. It's all about me and what it does for me.

Love, from God's perspective is all about sacrifice and not about self. We have been called to live a sacrificial love. We may do this for years and even the rest of our lives and see no apparent fruit. We are to love by faith not by feeling. The reason we often have such a hard time doing it is because we draw on our own emotions' pitifully small resources. Romans 5:5 says: "And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us." One definition of this word 'heart' in the Greek is this: 'the soul or mind, as it is the fountain and seat of the thoughts, passions, desires, appetites, affections, purposes, endeavours'. Wow, to literally think of our hearts as fountains. What a word picture. What do fountains do? They pour out water. If we allow God to pour his love into us through daily prayer and bible study, our hearts can literally pour out--like a fountain--onto all of those around us.

I really needed to be reminded of this today. I think an index card is calling out for this verse, how about you? :)