June 27, 2026

Love Does

I used to spend a lot of time focused on the immorality and sin of the homeless, attributing their behavior to drugs and a self-absorbed life style. God eventually made it clear to me that He had not yet given up on their salvation. I began to pray for His will to manifest in their lives. And that is when God was able to give me peace. I had been judging them instead of standing in the gap for them. God is the only judge who matters. Father, let me never be caught standing in judgement instead of praying and loving your people.

God’s love overwhelms me. When I think on it I am in pure joy. God’s sacrifice of His own Son reduces all rebellion, ego and self-will in me. He is so so good. His gifts should never leave our thoughts. Loving Him in return, adoring Him, is simply reasonable service for His great love.

If Joseph and Gideon and so many others were chosen and used to save many lives, it should be easy for us to believe there is sufficient and logical reason for God to use us. Obedience requires us to say, “Yes Lord,” and follow our call.

We ignore God and His invitation to life with Him, at our own peril. The shiny things, the work’s distractions, have no lasting value. Far better to follow Jesus, to identify our call and our mission and spend a lifetime in the presence and majesty of God’s realm.

Be careful not to go overboard. Left to our own devices we tend to do too little. But once submitted to Jesus, in our fervor to please Him, we do too much. Go too far. Miss the intrinsic value of simple obedience and pleasure in creation. He said, ‘love your neighbor as you love yourself.’ Simple. No judgment. No preaching. No fixing. No terms. Love. Simple love. Easy breezy!

I recall resisting God’s courting and His love for a long time. I listened, instead, to the siren call of the world. I even remember believing the church was more punishment than comfort. And then God’s tender love broke through. The church never judges or wounds. The people in the church can do that. But never will God do it. God is love. He is the exhorter we need, the power that saves, the light that brings enlightenment. I thank God daily for the love He had that pursued me into His comfort and joy.

No matter where we have been or what we have done, Jesus knows our name. And when He is ready and we are ready it will be time for Him to call us out and set us on our path into His design.

Lord Jesus, Life as a Christian is mostly delightful. Loving people as I love myself was not easy to accomplish. But I thank You, that learning to do that has made my life calmer, sweeter, and much more filled with human connections. Thank You that I no longer surrender to judgment and criticism. Help me find victory in loving others and praying always for their success.

If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing. ... 1 Corinthians 13