Christ's Constraining Love

Yesterday was just one of those days... One where where you feel really discouraged and just don't know how you can ever get back up again. Yet, God remains faithful and His working does not depend on our feelings. Amen for that! I listened to a message last night that God brought me to for a reason. I needed it. The speaker was talking about how we sometimes start focusing on our failures and on how much we aren't loving God. He reminded us that we didn't love God in the first place and then went on to point out 2 Cor. 5:14 that says "The Love of Christ constraineth us." He said for us to notice that it doesn't say "the love FOR Christ contraineth us", but rather "the love OF Christ constraineth us". Even when we aren't desiring God the way we should, His love is keeping us. And it is His love that helps us to draw close to Him. I know this is such an old thing, but somehow it just overwhelmed me last night. I just needed to be reminded that God doesn't ever stop loving us.

Another thing God used to encourage me was something Rachel said in a prayer this morning. She basically said "God, we go our own way and push you out of sight, but then when we turn back to You, You just open Your arms to us." and I was thinking to myself, "How does He do that? As a human, if a person kept pushing me away and then just turned back to me when they needed help, I don't think I'd be very willing to show love. I wouldn't want them to think that I was someone they could just run over whenever they felt like it. I wouldn't want them to think that they could take advantage of me." Yet, that's exactly what God does for us. Every time we sin, He gently tries to turn us back to Him. As Rachel was praying and I was thinking about all this, it suddenly hit me anew. That is what true agape love is. I know I've heard that God loves us with an agape love and that He loves his enemies, but somehow this morning it seemed so personal and real to me. We don't have anything in us that desires or loves God, yet His love constrains, upholds and draws us closer to Him. I can't say that I understand it, but it does make me feel an overflowing sense of love and adoration for my God. A God who loved me so much that He forsook His own Son so that He would never, ever have to forsake me.

Chrystal