Love
Oh my Word! God is teaching me and showing me so much right now. My heart is overflowing! I have been struggling lately with what love is. Do I really know or understand what love is? Am I able to give and receive love, especially if I really am unsure as to what it is or what it looks like? And God is answering my prayers.
I read a book by John Eldredge, Walking with God. In this book he discusses the different ‘agreements’ that we make over the years about things in our lives. Sometimes it is consciously and sometimes subconsciously. I realized while reading this chapter in this book that I have made many ‘agreements’ about love over the years. Based on my upbringing, it isn’t surprising. My mother got sick with cancer when I was three, my parents divorced, my mom died when I was 10 years old, my dad remarried and divorced again. I was not raised in a Christian home. As a kid, I saw a lot of what love should not be. I made many agreements that have followed me and affected me over the years. I have been unaware of these agreements in my life. But looking back I can see that they have been there, affecting me and my relationships.
I have overcome so much and have come so far. But God has so much more to teach me about love—about his love for me and then in turn how to give and receive love from others. God is revealing these agreements to me and helping me to overcome them. I am breaking free from my past!
Some of the ‘Love agreements’ that I realize I have made of the years:
Love is painful—it hurts to love and be loved
Love is temporary—it never lasts
Nobody loves me, I will be alone forever
My heart is afraid to give and receive love
I don’t need anyone’s love—I am strong and can make it on my own
What the Lord has been telling me about Love:
I love you, Quincy!
I will never leave you (John 14:16)
My love never fails (Romans 8:38-39)
Come to me for healing and I will heal your heart, I will transform it and your belief in love (Jer. 3:22)
You must allow me to heal your heart.
You must give it completely to me.
Give me each and every broken piece of it. I will heal it and mold the pieces of your heart together (Isa. 64:8)
Give it over to me—piece by piece, hurt by hurt—and I will transform it, heal, it and put it all back together. Your heart is whole again and you will be able to give and receive love like never before. It will be better than you could ever imagine.
Quincy, I love you… I made you… you must accept my love, in order to be able to truly love others.
It is crazy to me to look back and see how one or more of these ‘agreements’ is at the root of so many painful situations in my life. Even recently, I can see how I believed some (if not all) of these agreements.
I am so thankful that God has revealed this to me and that he has not given up on me. I must continue to spend time with Him, soaking in His love, mercy, grace, and forgiveness. Because as he fills me up, I pray, that His love, mercy, grace and forgiveness overflows from me onto others.
posted by Quincy @ 8/24/2008 10:48:00 PM
7 Comments:
It's amazing how we allow our "circumstances" to mold our image of God. A great reminder to get our view of God as well as our view of man from scripture alone!
There is a wonderful book by Francine Rivers called "Redeeming Love". The book itself is the retelling of the book in the Bible Hosea. It is the journey of a Christian man that is called to love and forgive his wife. A woman God called him to marry and love. She was a prostitute, but more than that, she was a woman who had never known true love. She had been beaten and abused in so many ways, physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually. She felt nothing and yet felt everything. It is also about her journey in finding love... her Savior, Jesus Christ.
This book helped me see love differently and embrace the love of Christ and believe that love can be unconditional. I have a long way to go, but healing is happening through the Word of God, prayer and the encouragement of wonderful books and even more, wonderful friends.
Redeeming Love is an amazing book and if you have time, please read it. I am not a prostitute and in fact have never been with a man in any way, however, I have strayed from my first love, Christ, for the desire of other things in my life... so this book hit home for me. I myself come from a broken home and have definitely made "rules" about love in my life as well.
Just want to say thanks for your encouragement through your blog and your willingness to tell others what you are going through!
Your sister in Christ.
WOW! Thank you! I will pick up that book and read it. I have heard of it, but never read it. Thank you for your words, they are encouraging and a blessing to me.
I am learning and growing so much right now, I love it and never want it to stop!
I bought the book today. It is amazing!! Thanks for your suggestion.
Just wanted you to know that I am currently listening to the book, Redeeming Love, again (2nd time), as an audio book, plus 2 times reading it. I am learning new things about love once again. Just goes to show me that God uses the same tools over and over again to draw me closer to HIM and to change me. Just like HE uses HIS Word... new every morning.
I trust you are enjoying the book!
I understand your post about change. Change is inevitable and yet I resist it. Thanks for the post, very insightful and encouraging for me. Trying to step out of my comfort zone and it is scary, but yet rewarding too. Just started a new Bible Study...very large, very different than what I am used to, hardly know anyone, but God has already blessed me with the opportunity and the lessons.
Praising God that HE is gracious and does not give me too many changes at once, though at times it feels like it. But afterwards, the timing is always perfect, the changes are always necessary, the lessons learned are always valuable. The Potter is always molding me... thanks be to my Father, Who, loves me like I am, but also loves me enough to change me as needed, for my benefit.
HE continues to gently form us into Who HE needs us and wants us to be. So HE can use us for HIS work here on earth. We are God's Princesses and precious to HIM. How often I forget how valuable I am in HIS sight...
Quincy, you are valuable, you are loved and you are continually molded and formed by your Great and Awesome Creator. HE is very detailed and a perfectionist, so don't be surprised when HE tweaks you a bit. HE does it to us all.
Your sister in Christ
Oh, my! I don't know who you are, "anonymous" but God is using you in my life. Your words are encouraging and blessing me more than you know! I thank you for the comments that you have made. I appreciate each and every one of them!!
If you ever feel lead, email me (qdbeau@hotmail.com). I would love to know who you are. I would love to talk to you, hear your story, and get to know you!
I am reading the book and loving it! Thanks for the suggestion!
My Favorite Quote:
“Not many of us are living at our best. We linger in the lowlands because we are afraid to climb the mountains. The steepness and ruggedness dismay us, and so we stay in the misty valleys and do not learn the mystery of the hills. We do not know what we lose in our self indulgence. What glory awaits us if only we had the courage for the mountain climb. What blessing we should find if only we would move to the uplands of God.”
JRM
I will email you later today...
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