Separation part 2
Here's the question: "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?..." (Romans 8:35). And here's OUR answer: Anything and everything. The smallest little thing. A bad thought. A mistake. Not doing enough. Not being good enough. Missing church. Not reading our Bible. Here's the REAL answer: "...I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, not things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 8:38-39). NOTHING CAN SEPARATE US FROM THE LOVE OF GOD!!!!!!! And since God IS love, that means nothing can separate us from God! Let me say it another way, "The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee" (Jeremiah 31:3). And even another way, "Daddy's don't just love their children every now and then. It's a love without end, Amen" (George Strait). Now watch this, because this is important. Daddy doesn't love us because of what we do. He loves us because of who we are, and who He is. He loves us because He IS love. Here's why this is important--if we're secure in God's love FOR us, we can also be secure in His love THROUGH us. We can love others with the same love what we are loved with. I see things like, "Don't cross oceans for people that wouldn't cross a puddle for you." And all I can think is: THOSE ARE THE PEOPLE THAT NEED LOVE THE MOST! You can't give what you don't have, and you can only give what you do have. So if someone hurts you, it probably doesn't even have a whole lot to do with you. They're only giving what they have. They are hurt, so they hurt other. We are loved, so we love others. It's all about what's inside you coming out of you. That's the natural order of things. That's how it works. What's inside comes out. Naturally. And, again, that's why it's so important to know and believe the love of Christ. To be fixed and secure in Daddy's love for us. So that we know what we have, and we can give what we have. We receive it and release it. And we don't have to be afraid that any little thing can separate us from His love. Paul said, "I am persuaded." That's what faith, or belief, is all about. We don't HOPE God loves us. We KNOW He loves us. He convinced us of His love for us by giving His life for us and giving His life to us. When Jesus said the greatest expression of love that a man can have is to lay down His life for His friends... He didn't just SAY it, He DID it. He went to the cross and laid His life down for us. He SHOWED us His love. He took it out of being a idea, or something we wish we could have, and He made it real. He gave it to us. And now that we have it, we can share it. Now that we have it we can stop trying to earn it--and rob ourselves from enjoying it--and we can rest in His loving arms. We can stop stressing, and stop pulling flower petals trying to figure out if He loves us or not. He does. He always has, and He always will. And nothing can change that.