Just Love Me

In the depths of my spiritual war, I was turning away from everything and everyone. I was in trouble and I knew it, yet I did not care. I just wanted the torment to end. I had asked God two questions. Was I called and what did He want from me? To my surprise, He answered my first question point blank. I struggled and waited for the response to my second question, not holding out much hope.

Despite having no desire to do so, I went to the most basic spiritual discipline, reading God’s Word. I decided I would spend a little time each night before bed and read God’s Word. I would open the Bible app on my iPad and read several chapters.

I started in the book of John. I had been reading for a couple of weeks when it happened. The chapters I were reading were not significant. Not that God’s Word is not significant as it is all living and breathing. It just happened. Right there in John chapter 7.

I had started at the top of the chapter and before I hit the third verse, it happened. There were no expectations. No plea on my part. It just happened. A warm glow emitted from my iPad and enveloped my face. Tears began to stream from my eyes for no reason. I felt a peace like no other. Then I heard it. “Love me, just love me.”

All God wanted from me was to love Him. The warm glow lasted a bit longer and then it was gone. I laid in my bed dumbstruck. God had just talked to me directly. He just answered my second question, “What do you want from me?” God wanted me to just love Him. But how do I do that? I came to the realization that I really did not know how to love God. So, what does it mean to love God?

Sure, some of you may be thinking that is a stupid question. But is it? Do we really know what it means to love God? I really had to sit back and ask myself this.

God’s response to my second question took me by surprise. His response also generated more questions. Did I not love God? Was I doing this spirituality thing all wrong? What does it mean to “love God?” None of these questions had easy answers.

This would take reflection and deep soul searching on my part, neither of which I was ready to do just at that moment in my spiritual war. The war ended shortly after that encounter. It was time to assess the spiritual, physical, and emotional damage, make some hard decisions, and come to grips with the new reality of my life. I was now a 24/7 caregiver to two elderly parents who needed me and would continue to need me until their time on this earth was finished.

Just love Me. What did that mean? The Bible tells us to love the Lord with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. Have you ever really thought about that Scripture? Take a look at that now. Go ahead, I’ll wait. You can find it in Matthew 22:37, Luke 10:27, and Deuteronomy 6:5.

What does that mean to you? To me that says the Lord comes first and I am to do everything in my power to do it with all my heart, all my soul, all my mind, and all my strength. Can you honestly say that you have ever done that? I haven’t. This isn’t something new, check out the ten commandments. What is the first commandment? I am the Lord, thy God along with you will have no other gods before Me. Yep, that’s number one.

What Does it Look Like to Love God?

Both the Old and New Testament have plenty of examples of what it means to love God. Loving God is part of it, but it goes much further. First, if we love God, we are to keep His commandments. Deuteronomy 11:1 says, “You shall therefore love the Lord your God, and always keep His charge, His statutes, His ordinances, and His commandments.”

We are to serve God with all our hearts (Deut. 11:13). When we love God, we are to love others (Mark 12:33). 1 John 2:5 tells us, “But whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected. By this we know that we are in Him,” showing us of the transformative power of Jesus. 1 John 4:16 shows us the power of love by saying, “And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.” God is love and his love endures forever (Psalm 136:26).

The power of restoration and transformation come forth as I think about the life of Peter. Peter denied Jesus three times in His time of need, yet Peter became the leader of the church when Jesus left this planet. Do you remember how many times Jesus asked Peter if he loved Him? Jesus asked Peter three times, the same number of times that Peter denied Him. Look at the Scriptures: John 21:15-17.

Verse 15: When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, 'Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?' Peter said to him, 'Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.' Jesus said to him, 'Feed my lambs' (John 21:15, ESV).

Verse 16: He said to him a second time, 'Simon, son of John, do you love me?' Peter said to him, 'Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.' He said to him, 'Tend my sheep' (John 21:16, ESV).

Verse 17: Jesus said to Peter the third time, 'Simon, son of John, do you love me?' Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time, 'Do you love me?' and he said to him, 'Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.' Jesus said to him, 'Feed my sheep'” (John 21:17, ESV).

Now, let’s take a look at John 14:15, ““If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” “If you truly love someone, you will do everything possible that your loved one needs you to do,” states Graham.[1] I have found this true in my personal life as I have done everything I can humanly do for my parents in their final years. I am not saying I have not complained, gotten angry, or resentful, but I have done everything that I could to keep them comfortable and to give them what they want and need.

Loving God means putting Him first place in our lives, following His commands, loving, and caring for others, loving and caring for ourselves, caring for this planet, serving others, and growing in spiritual formation into the image of Christ. Loving God is a pretty big thing to ask but it’s not impossible.

You see, God first loved us, making it all possible through the sacrifice of Jesus. We may think that loving God is easy to do. We can simply say we love God. But loving God means more than just saying it. God’s instruction to love Him involves loving others and loving ourselves. Loving others is not always easy. Loving ourselves, well that is a whole other story and that is where self-discovery and spiritual formation meet. Something I will talk about later.

For now, can you say you truly love God? Do you know Him well enough to understand what it means to reflect the image of Jesus to others? How are you doing in your relationship with Him? Have you noticed any transformation in your life since accepting Jesus as Lord and savior? Don’t worry, I’m not going to leave this here. There is much more to cover.

Peace,

Janet

[1] Ron Graham, Feed My Sheep, SimplyBible.com. Accessed on 6/2/21. https://www.simplybible.com/f75q-chach-feed-my-sheep.htm.