Extravagance part 1
I like to focus on the little things. It's true. Because I believe the little things ARE the big things. Listening when someone needs to talk. Being there for someone. Giving a hug. Or even a fist bump. Just showing people you care in little ways. That can make all the difference. But for the next few days I want to flip the script and focus on the big things. The big THING that is the love of God. Because it's the biggest thing there is. Love is all-powerful. Which doesn't mean MOST powerful, it means all of the power. It means nothing else has any power. It's the idea of living out of our abundance. Living extravagantly. According to "extravagance" means, "excessive or unnecessary expenditure or outlay of money. Unrestrained or fantastic excess, as of actions or opinons." Now, obviously when we're talking about love it's the second one there. Fantastic excess. Unrestrained. Which (and I think I'm really going to get into this maybe tomorrow) is only possible when we understand that love casts out fear. We don't have to restrain ourselves when it comes to loving people. We don't have to be afraid to give what we've got. Look at 2 Corinthians 13:14 in the Message Bible, "The amazing grace of the Master, Jesus Christ, the extravagant love of God, the intimate friendship of the Holy Spirit, be with all of you." To me, that sounds pretty good. Because if it's with us... we have it. If we have it... we can use it. Receiving and releasing, right? Letting what's inside come out by knowing and believing that it's in there. Well... that's what's in there. Amazing grace. Intimate friendship. Extravagant love. Let me put it another way as I try to build the foundation for this Rant series. "Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us" (Ephesians 3:20). Exceeding abundantly above all that we could ask. Or even think. As big as we try to see God as... He's bigger. He's the biggest. He is everything. Nothing was made that wasn't made by Him. Through Him. For Him. By love. Through love. For love. An extravagant love that didn't restrain itself. An extravagant love that gave everything He had and everything He is. I always say, "Once you've something all you've got it's either enough... or it's not. And either way you've done all you can do." So when it comes to love it's about giving, not getting. You're not giving all you've got in the hopes that you'll get something back. You're giving all you've got because what you've got is worth giving. Because you want other people to have what you've got. It's that simple. I have something amazing. I want you to have it. So I'm giving it to you. That's why Jesus gave His life for us and to us; He wanted us to have it. He wanted us to experience His abundant, everlasting, eternal, Resurrection Life of love by living it in us, and through us, and as us. He wanted us to be a part of all that He has and all that He is. So He loved us without reservation. Unrestrained and excessively. Exceeding abundantly. He gave it His all. He gave US His all. So that we might have it all, and be able to (in the same way) give it all!