Remain part 4
I think one of the biggest--if not THE biggest--keys to life is showing up. Life is a participation sport. And a lot of the time it seems like we miss it. Because we're too busy trying to earn a gift... or because we're afraid to experience the gift we've been given. We think its too good to be true. So we don't trust it. We run FROM God (love) instead of running TO Him. Even though He (love) is our deepest desire. We want more than anything to be loved, and to remain in that love. But the world has knocked us down so many times that we start to lose the desire (or the ability) to get back up and keep trying. We get burned, and then we decide that in order to prevent that from ever happening again we need to stay as far away from the fire as possible. Even though, in truth, GOD is the consuming fire. And if someone burns you, that says everything about THEM and nothing about YOU. Chances are you just happened to be in the way. But it still hurts. And nobody likes to be hurt. So we build walls around ourselves. Around our hearts. And we think that's how we guard, or keep, our hearts. Keep them safe. Keep them from harm. The problem with that thinking, though, is that to live is to love and to love is to live. If you're not open to love then you're walking dead. Going through the motions. Robbing yourself of the gift you've been given. And that's tragic. Because Jesus came to GIVE us LIFE. And that more abundantly. In the Message Bible John 10:10 reads like this, "A thief is only there to steal and kill and destroy. I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of." To me this verse (and all the rest of the Bible, quite honestly) is about love. Because at the end of the day that IS the desire of our heart. Love is what makes the abundant life abundant. Love is what makes life better than we ever dreamed of. And watch this: Ephesians 3:20 says, "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." The power that worketh in us is Jesus. God in the flesh. Love in a body. God in YOUR flesh. Love in YOUR body. The power that worketh in us... is love. And that's how Jesus is able to do exceeding abundantly above anything we could ask for or even think about. Through His love. A love that has already been freely given, and simply needs to be received and released. In order to experience that gift... we have to share it. Because love is giving. When you give love, you experience love. When you love others... you remain in the love of God. Nothing can separate us from that love. But in order to truly live the everlasting, eternal, abundant, Resurrection Life of Christ we must let HIM live His own life (of love) in us, and through us, and as us. We must show up. We must stand firm no matter how hard, or how many times life tries to knock us down. And if life DOES knock us down, we get back up. We endure. We remain. We stand ON something, and we stand FOR something. We stand ON the Rock that is our foundation. And we stand FOR love. Living and loving don't just go hand in hand. Living and loving are same thing. So be open to love. Its not too good to be true. Its THE truth. Its so good it must be true!