Believing God's Love for You

God's love for us is everlasting. That means that God's love for us existed before we were born and will exist after we have died. It is an eternal love in which we are embraced. ~ Henri J. M. Nouwen

If there's one thing you need to know above all others it's that God loves you. Yes, you! No matter what you've done or not done, said or not said, God loves you! He delights in you as His favorite child (of course, He has lots of those, but that's OK).

Consider these verses:

• He delivered me, because He delighted in me ~ 2 Sam. 22:20

• Blessed be the Lord thy God, which delighted in thee ~ I Kings 10:9

• ... to the saints that are in the earth... is all My delight ~ Ps. 16:3

Even His correction is a sign of His love: For whom the Lord loveth he corrects; even as a father the son in whom He delights (Prov. 3:12). The Bible says He also delights in your prayers! (Prov. 15:8) Like any parent, He probably sits in heaven, saying, "Look there! That's my child! I sure do love that kid!"

His love is all-encompassing. All the other characteristics of God flow from His great heart of Love.

For instance, the Bible says God,... is rich in mercy, for [because of] his great love wherewith He loved us (Eph. 2:4-5). His mercy is so rich and abundant it is new every morning! No matter what you might do or say today, no matter what you might regret or wish you could undo, He's already forgiven you for it. Every day - just like manna - you get a fresh dose of mercy. You are pre-forgiven for everything... because He loves you. The mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting (Ps. 103:17).

Healing, physical, mental and emotional, flows from God's heart of Love. During Jesus' time on earth, He healed them all - huge crowds, many times. No disease, debilitation or disaster was too great. He never said, "No, I can't" or "No, I won't." The Bible says God was 'well pleased' with Him (Matt. 17:5). That means God is pleased when you are healed and well! Jeremiah affirmed that God will restore health unto thee, and I will heal thee of thy wounds (v. 30:17). Why? Because He loves you.

Psalm 29 says the LORD will bless His people with peace (v. 11), so apparently peace is a blessing from God. Psalm 85, says He will speak peace unto His people, and to His saints (v. 8). Do you understand the power that is released when God speaks? He said, "Let there be light", and light erupted across the universe and beyond. It's probably still expanding! Well, He's spoken 'PEACE' unto you. Why? Because He loves you! Peace be to [you], and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ (Eph. 6:23).

... He will love thee, and bless thee, and multiply thee... (Deut. 7:13). Blessing and prosperity flow from God's great heart of love. He wants to see His children do well and have plenty. In fact, He wants you to have so much that you've got an abundance to give away! There are so many verses that promise blessing and prosperity. Paul said God will meet your every need (Phil 4:19). In Ephesians, he explained that God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that he, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work (v. 1:8). And Psalms says God has pleasure in the prosperity of His servant (v. 35:27). God wants to make your cup run over! Just because He loves you.

Every letter the Apostles wrote that are recorded in the New Testament start or end with an affirmation of God's grace, favor and blessing that are integral with His great love. Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, Peter said. If you don't know and fully understand the love of God, you also won't know, understand and receive the blessings that are a part of His infinite love.

"God loves me." You need to say that over and over to yourself until it renews your mind to the Truth. Just the thought of it should create a stirring in your heart of hearts, a 'quickening' that attests to the reality of His love for you.

We all know the verse from John 3:16 For God so loved the world... That 'world' is you... and me and her and him and them. His love is so big and grand and encompassing, it includes even the most difficult people you know. How can you develop a deeper comprehension of His love? In this was manifested the love of God toward us: that God sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. Herein is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins (I John 4:9-10).

Read. There are dozens of Bible verses that affirm God's love for you and me. Just reading the words from His Book will build trust in your soul. You begin to develop an understanding of His great Love, compassion, mercy and peace. Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God! (I John 3:1).

Meditate. Meditate simply means to focus, contemplate or reflect. Pick one or two verses each day. Roll them over and over in your thinking. Like a magnifying glass, focused attention will bring revelation and allow God to release new wisdom into your mind. Paul told Timothy to meditate upon these things; give thyself wholly to them (I Tim. 4:15).

Believe. Don't let doubt or fear block your understanding and acceptance of His love for you. For God has not given us the spirit of fear [fear comes from Satan], but of power and of love and of a sound mind (2 Tim. 1:7). The Apostle John explained that love casts out fear (I John 4:18). Believing God loves you unquestionably and unconditionally will drive fear away because you will know you can trust Him to take care of you. That's why Jesus specifically said not to fear or worry about what you wear or eat or need. God wants to supply it all (Phil. 4:19) because He loves you!

Pray. Have you ever noticed that Paul's prayers were always for someone else? He didn't feel the need to pray for his own needs because he trusted God's love, mercy, grace and peace to take care of him. Instead, he functioned from a place of love and obedience, praying that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment (Phil. 1:9). Pray for God to make you more aware of His love in your life. Pray that He would show you opportunities to love and bless others.

Practice. First John 4:11-12 says Beloved, [did you get that? Be loved!] if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another. No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwells in us, and his love is perfected in us. As God's child, He expects you to copy Him, just like a child imitates a parent. Practice love - all the time, in every circumstance -so that you can truly say,... we have known and believed the love that God hath for us (I John 4:16).

The last part of that verse says, God is love, and he that dwells in love dwells in God, and God in him. God and His Love dwell in you - all the time! You are never without His love.

There's a principle based on the book and movie that says, 'pay it forward'. With God, that's not possible. He's way ahead of you where love and blessing are concerned. But you can study, meditate, believe, pray and practice your own love walk.

It's rather like a kid learning to ride a bicycle. That child wants to comfort of knowing Dad's got hold of the bike and is running along beside him. Develop a deeper understanding of His love, knowing that He's holding your hand and encouraging you. "You can do it!" He says to you. "And if you fall down, I'm right here. I'm not going anywhere. I'll never leave you or forsake you... because I love you."

Crd: Ruth Seebeck