*Update* My blog now lives here!
“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” John 13:34-35
I was the one with knife in pocket and candy cane sleeves. The one who was always happy, smiling, and laughing; nobody saw through that. I was the one who wished I had never been born. The one who deemed myself hated and unlovable.
Then one day, God spoke through a stranger who knew nothing about my struggles. This man proclaimed the truth of God’s unconditional love for me. It was this love that transformed my heart and my life.
As I began to surrender more of my life to Christ, He used Romans 12:9-21 to transform me. This past year, God taught me how to be loved. Guilt used to weigh me down if I received more than I gave in any relationship. Now, I’m free to love, and I’m free to be loved. And it’s a beautiful thing because as I learn to receive love, I learn to love better.
I heard from a professor that love is doing what is best for someone else regardless of the cost to self, and this is so true. Love is Jesus living among us, being crucified on a cross, and rising from the dead, that we might spend eternity with Him.
This thanksgiving, I cooked a traditional meal for some international friends. I’m vegan, and there I was alone with this turkey. I was certain that the moment I touched it, I was going to be sick. But it wasn’t about a turkey. It was about someone actually wanting to spend a holiday with them and invite them in. And I knew it was worth it. On that day, loving meant setting aside my desires and cooking a turkey. And heck, I roasted that thing.
“No one gets to love or be loved well in self-protection.” That’s what a book called The Cure taught me. The thing about love is that it requires the focus to move from self to God. And when our focus is on God, we will naturally love others out of that. As God teaches me love and showers it on me, I hope that I steward it well.
This has been a painful and beautiful process of growth, and I am truly a different person than I used to be. It’s not easy. It wasn’t supposed to be. But it is beyond worth it.
So who is God asking you to “cook a turkey” for? Maybe it’s sitting down with the guy who lives on the streets and listening to his story. Or inviting over your neighbor or coworker who is always in a bad mood. Or planning a special night with your husband or wife. Or inviting the widow from you church to lunch. Your version of cooking a turkey could be so many things. God will lead you and show you His heart as you follow Him and seek after Him.
Father, please help me to be this kind of love. This is what I desire. And I will not always do the best. I don’t always know what is best for someone. But I ask for help. I hope to be a vessel of your love. More than that, may I love you in this way. Make me willing to sacrifice anything and everything for Your name. Please open the eyes of each person reading this to the reality of your love for them. May they know in their hearts how great Your love is. And teach them to love as You love.
“Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.” Romans 12:9-15
