Love is like a two-way street. The "way" from which we give love to others is the very same "way" that allows us to receive love. It's kind of like a snorkel. If water gets in, you can't breathe until it gets blown out.
Which makes love difficult when we've been hurt. We might be tempted to close ourselves off, vowing to not put ourselves in a position to get hurt again. But when we do that, it's not just that we're not giving love; we're also closing off the pathway to receiving love.
Bob Goff uses this example when talking about how the Bible links the command to "love God" with the command to "love others." He says: "If we are open to loving others, then our hearts are open to being loved by God. And if our hearts are open to being loved by God, then they are free to let love flow to our neighbors."
When and where have we closed off our hearts to receiving the extravagant love of God for us? How have pain and self-protection cut us off from the source of life?
In our class, we spoke about how, when love grips us (like when we met our spouses), expressions of love don't feel obligatory, even if they are extravagant. It's not as if we begrudge having to "go the extra mile" in order to show love to them. Quite the opposite! We want to proclaim to the world how much we love them. We want to do and give and show and express in all the ways we can. Not because we have to. Because love--tremendous love--has taken hold of us.
What would our day to day look like if we refused to dwell in the hate and hurt and anger that we typically feast upon and instead got captured and captivated and caught up in the extravagant love God has for us? What would change if we did? How would others know we were "in love" and loved by God?
Comments