I’m not going to say, I have good news and bad news, since that’s not true.
But I am going to share good news and God news.
And this particular news piece features an extraordinary love story.
Love is one of those loose and hard to define terms we overuse and misuse.
Instead of like, we use love for everything from possessions and food to our favorite sports teams and celebrities.
We love ice-cream, brands, songs, books, and our favorite movies.
News That’s Not New
Honestly, I use love to describe my affections for cinnamon rolls, pasta, Chai tea lattes, boots, the Hallmark Channel, and sunsets.
And that’s only a few of my loves.
Still, we struggle to understand love—a feeling or an emotion?
In life’s hard moments, we may lose the loving feeling. For me, abandonment extinguished the emotion. Like when my dad vanished from my life for a few years.
Furthermore, culture woos us with a shallow love from people, things, and false ideas and religions.
Sometimes love fades when hearts break. My heart broke after friendships dissolved and family members died including a baby in utero. I lost hope in love.
Good, Good News
Then, there’s this: For a portion of my life, I wondered, Am I lovable?
Inside chatter tried to convince me otherwise. Internal voices mocked true love. Only the lovely, the best, the deserving—basically, the cream of the crop—meet the standards.
I assumed love only thrived in shiny things and people.
Ever wondered if you are lovable? Or, maybe like me, you’ve questioned what it takes for others to consider you someone worth loving.
How do we secure love without prerequisites? A kissing-tear-wiping-make-it-better-kind-of-love.
There’s good news and God news. Although less outwardly frilly, a timeless love exists that’s unfailing and undying.
Jesus Christ, God’s Son, came to earth and died for us on Calvary’s cross. Why? Because…
God loves us, this we know, for the Bible tells us so.
It’s good, good news!
God News
This good news exposes God news: God’s love is past, present, and future tense. He loved us in the womb. He loves us today and tomorrow and every day into the future.
His love is a sure love…never lost, only found.
And it gives us hope in a guaranteed pledge of love that’s never eliminated from our lives.
This I call to mind and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end. Lamentations 3:21-22, ESV
No matter the outcome of our experiences with other types of love. The writer of Lamentations reminds us of hope in God’s steadfast love.
It’s loyal, unwavering, unconditional, dependable, and never ceases…ever.
Lovable
Regardless of what others say or think or do: I am lovable. You are lovable.
What’s your experience with love? Do you know without a doubt God loves you?
This post first appeared on KarenGirlFriday/Hope is Among Us.
Featured photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash/Top photo by Nick Fewings on Unsplash/Middle photo by Nick Fewings on Unsplash/Bottom photo by Giulia May on Unsplash.
God loves me! God loves ALL. All people are valuable and created in His image. We are to love all no matter what!
Yes, oh, how He loves you and me!
Thank you for this reminder. Well done!
Thank you, Michael. Appreciate you reading and taking the time to leave a comment. God loves us, this we know, for the Bible tells us so.
It’s good, good news!
May God help us to know His love–and to love others as He does!
Lord, let it be so! God’s love is past, present, and future tense. He loved us in the womb. He loves us today and tomorrow and every day into the future.
It’s always comforting to be reassured of God’s love. You have done this beautifully. Thank you.
Appreciate your comment, Janice. We hope in God’s steadfast love.
It’s loyal, unwavering, unconditional, dependable, and never ceases…ever.
God’s love is unfathomable. I can’t wrap my arms around the idea that God loves each of us intimately. It’s so good to be in His family and I hope I can share His love with others in a way that shows them God truly loves them.
Hey Stephen, it is hard to understand fully God’s love. Thankful it’s a guaranteed pledge of love that’s never eliminated from our lives.
“ This good news exposes God news: God’s love is past, present, and future tense. He loved us in the womb. He loves us today and tomorrow and every day into the future.” This is truly great news especially as I begin my day. Amen! Thanks for sharing Karen.
Glad this encouraged you, Yvonne. This I call to mind and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end. Lamentations 3:21-22, ESV
Amen. The love God has for us is forever. What a comfort to know we are loved by Him.
Yes, Melissa, it’s good news and God news!
Karen, such beautiful truths in your post. I know that I KNOW God loves me, and He loves all of His children. He helped me to see this very clearly during a difficult season in my life. And I will never doubt I am loved by Him.
That’s wonderful, Jeanne. So many people doubt God’s love for them even when they believe He loves others or just don’t believe they are lovable. Thankful God has given me clarity and assured me of His great love.
I had a godly Grandmother who loved me unconditionally. She was a lifeline to me, and because of her, I knew that I was loveable. So many experiences of our youth can leave us feeling unloved and unseen, and many of those occurred in the home of my origin. But for that Grandmother, I don’t know what or who I would be at this point. She was God’s grace in my life.
Glad you had your grandmother, Melinda, to point the way to feeling loved in an unconditional way. I had two wonderful and godly grandmothers who both helped me in the same way once I was a part of their lives.