I have something I need to confess. I like to scare my children. If I hear them coming, I’ll hide. And when they least expect it, I jump out at them and they scream. And I laugh and laugh and laugh. I know…mother of the year, right?
I have a friend who used to do this to her son so much that one time he looked at her and said, “Why do you hate me?” Of course she reminded him she loved him and always would, but he just wasn’t feelin’ it.
Sometimes I’ve gone through seasons that are just awesome. Spectacular. Amazing. I’m on top of the world and it’s easy to be happy and say, “God loves me! Look how He’s blessed me. Isn’t life wonderful?”
I’ve also gone through seasons that weren’t so wonderful. That were downright awful. Painful. Joy wasn’t so easy to find and it left me wondering instead, “I thought Your plans were not to harm me but to give me hope. Well, in case you couldn’t see, this is harming me. This is hopeless. Where are You? Why do You hate me? How could You let this happen?”
Ever been there?
I wonder if Joseph ever thought that in the pit or slavery or prison. “Umm…Lord. My dream was to be a leader. My brothers were going to bow down to me. Where are You going with this?”
I wonder if Mary ever had thoughts like that. “God, the angel called me favored, but my fiancé wants to leave me and my family doesn’t believe me. I am an unwed mother. This doesn’t feel like favor to me.”
It’s in times like those that some people just walk away. They don’t understand and let go of trust and leave.
The truth is, He loved me just as much in the amazing times as He did in the awful times. He loves me whether I feel like it or not.
In the amazing times, He smiled with me. In the painful times he was my pain medicine and comforter and healer and ever-present helper. And He always carried me through.
When things are going great, it’s easy to feel loved. But in the midst of trial and struggle and loss, we usually need a little reminder.
So, I’m here to tell you today:
Always remember you are loved.
But He poured His grace over me, and I was flooded in an abundance of the grace and faith and love that can only be found in Jesus the Anointed. (I Timothy 1:14 Voice)
Christmas was one of the greatest acts of love there ever was. It was when Jesus confined Himself to a human body – a baby no less – and became a living, breathing, walking-among-us, touchable, tangible demonstration of just how much we are loved.
If you’re on top of the world today, then find someone to share the love with. Guaranteed someone you’ll run into today is in desperate need of it.
If you’re walking through the fire, say this out loud:
He has poured His grace over me. I am flooded in an abundance of grace and faith and love. He’ll never leave me. He is carrying me to victory. Father, I trust You.
Then take a deep breath and remember.