Unchanging

Where are you at today? Is life good? Are things going well? Maybe you just got a raise, a promotion, a new relationship. Or maybe it's nothing specific, just a general sense of well-being. Perhaps things are just falling into place before your eyes.

Or maybe life sucks right now. Maybe you just can't catch a break. Maybe, no matter where you turn, you find rejection and chaos. Maybe everything just hurts.

Or maybe, just maybe, you're a little bit of both, swinging back and forth on a pendulum of emotion.

No matter what's going on today, no matter what happened yesterday, no matter what happens tomorrow, you are loved. LOVED! Deeply. Eternally. Passionately. Completely. Without contracts, terms, or conditions. Without boundaries.

I don't think that you and I have the capacity to fully grasp this concept. Unconditional love. It's unrelenting. It doesn't back down. It's beautiful. It's utterly terrifying. See, that's simply not how we conceptualize the world. Every other relationship is, at very least, tinged with a hint of "I scratch your back, you scratch mine." This thought process, coupled with the innate idea that the world revolves around us, makes us prone to this idea of "Yes, God loves me, but ____." Ladies and gentlemen, there is no "but"! I can't even wrap my mind around that. When we're talking about the love of God, the exception simply doesn't exist.

But I did ____. I still love you.

But I didn't ____. I still love you.
But I'm still doing ____. I still love you.

But I'm a slave to ____. I still love you.

But I'm not who they think I am. I still love you.

But I don't desire You. I still love you.

But You're not my first love. I still love you.

But I just don't have time. I still love you.

But I can do it on my own. I still love you.

But I'm not content. I still love you.

But I don't know if I can trust You. I still love you.

But I don't have the strength. I still love you.

But everything hurts. I still love you.

But I'm not good enough. I still love you.

But I'm broken. I still love you.
But I'm afraid. I still love you.

But what if I fall apart? I still love you.

But what if I don't live up? I still love you.

But what if I fail? I still love you.

But what if I never get it right? I still love you.

That's the kind of love that can destroy a person. Draw closer to your Lover. You'll never be the same. It'll wreck your life if you let it. It'll be painful. It'll be heartbreaking. But, my friend, it'll be beautiful. It'll set you free.

Free from the rules you've been following. Free from the desperation that laces your heart late at night. Free from the fears that haunt you when you're alone.  Free from trying to fit in, trying to live up, and trying to find yourself.

In fact, you and I have already been set free! We're free because His love for us is constant. Rather than being based on us and our actions, motives, thoughts, or desires, it's based on the Savior who died for you. And our Savior never changes. He'll never fail. He just won't relent. He never leaves. He will never abandon you.

The sun may not always shine. But Christ's love for us is always the same. He is faithful, constant, and true in every circumstance, regardless of ourselves. His love never fails.

My hope is that, at the end of my life, I'll be just a few steps closer to grasping this love that never gives up.

How can I keep from singing your praise? How can I ever say enough? How amazing is your love!