The weather had just changed from Southern hot to cool in Tennessee. Ordinarily this would have filled my little country heart with the brisk optimism that comes from a change in season: the autumnal joys of dark blues skies, scarlet leaves, and bright fires. But last year, the cold weather had me thinking crazy thoughts about swimming squirrels. Just a year before, we had three squirrels go for a swim in our pool over a stretch of three days. Now fall weather unexpectedly conjures up images of bushy tails, all wet and wilted, and tiny paws carefully paddling in cold turquoise water.
We’re not sure what exactly possessed the squirrels to swim, but I think they did it for love. I hypothesize that each successive swimmer was trying to rescue its predecessor. I think it’s a love story about a family of squirrels who were willing to stand up (or, in this case, dive in) and look death in the face as a way of looking after each other: Fear not, Mother Squirrel! I’m coming in after you! I don’t know a lot about the internal motivation of the squirrel, but I know the drive to protect loved ones is strong, no matter who you are.
John learned about love from the Master. He got to spend years watching how Jesus loved people, and here is his conclusion: “Let us not love in word or speech, but in action and in truth” (1John 3:18). The love of Jesus is love in action. And this active love was not just limited to foot washing and lake fishing. “This is how we have come to know love: He laid down His life for us. We should also lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters” (v.16).
Whew.
I don’t know about you, but the kind of love I’m willing to offer is this: I’ll help you move into your apartment, I’ll let you choose the restaurant, and I’ll include you, even though you’re not that funny—and that’s for my friends! But when Jesus died for us, we were still His enemies; “while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). How much more then, should we lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters?
Love is hard. Real love means real sacrifice and compromise, and unpleasantness. Jesus is our example of love in action. He literally laid down His life for us.
This kind of love feels big. Most of us have experienced some great big feeling of love, so it seems like a natural step that we can grit our teeth and turn those feelings of love into huge, selfless actions of love. It’s sometimes possible for us to swing glorious acts and promises of love when we are at our very best, dressed in our finest, with our loved ones standing around sporting giant smiles. But we are also called upon to make good on those promises at three in the morning, when no one is watching and grand gestures are the last thing on our minds. No amount of effort is enough for me to love with the consistency, action, and sacrifice that I see in the life of Christ.
How can I follow Christ’s example? And how can I teach my children to love if I can’t even love them enough to make sure all six of them have clean teeth, let alone lay down my life for them day in and day out?
Here’s the element that changes everything: I am God’s child; He calls us His children. This means that when we love, no matter what time of day it is, we aren’t loving out of our own strength—we love in His strength. Christ’s example isn’t just an example; His love is also what enables us to love with action, because “he remains in us” (1John 3:24).
We were certainly created for love. And in our effort to show love, we will find ourselves laying down our lives for each other in some scary places, like jumping into a cold swimming pool or giving care to someone with no hope of reward. We can’t cut it in our own strength, but Christ’s call to love in action comes with a promise that He is with us, even to the very end.
This has convicted me big time
Hi sisters I thought I posted something earlier but it isn’t showing up on my laptop and when I try to repost it it says it’s a duplicate. Please let me know if it showed up on some one else’s or if there is a glitch in the system.
Trisha thank for your service.
Kelsi I know where you are coming from and I will be praying for you and your brother.
It’s hard to always remember how big His love is for us, at least it is for me. We see day to day love with our friends and family, but I don’t think I’ll ever be able to grasp how abundant His love his for me. It’s amazing and I tend to forget. I pray that we’ll always remember His love and how perfect it is and that I will continue to try and show that love to others.
If that isn’t enough to keep loving on others, I don’t know what would be!! Jesus loves us, so the best we can do is to past that love onto others, especially those who don’t know him.
Such an important lesson about love and what it truly is. Many in the world don’t know what true love is.
Yesterday’s devotion talked about earthly fathers and our Heavenly Father. My human father and I had our ups and downs but he loved me greatly and it was from him that I got my greatest knowledge of God, Christ, the Holy Spirit and the Bible. My boys father, after our divorce was not in their life much so the other older males (grandfathers and uncles) were more of fathers to them and my son will even say that.
Oh how Rebecca had me laughing at the beginning of her devotion as I envisioned those squirrels in her pool swimming and trying to save each other. During this season of every ones life with this pandemic going on I have seen and heard about so many people doing so much good. I wonder if some of it would be done if we were in our normal lives. The family I work with, one of the other daughters works for Papa Murphy’s and many people when they pick up their pizzas are giving her and her coworkers larger than normal tips. The staff have to take the pizzas out to the car to them. Rebecca went on to say, “We were certainly created for love.” and right now I am seeing that so much more. One of the nursing newsletters I receive daily had this video titled OneRepublic – Better Days https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fnHlRQZZbbY which is great. Have a blessed day my sisters and try to stay happy.
Kelsie, Morgan, Jane, each of you and your loved ones are especially on my heart with the hard struggles you are facing with mental issues. I write my first comment each day without reading others comments first. Today, my thoughts were wrapped around the hardships of mental and physical struggles which debilitate individuals and effect families greatly. Then, I read your comments and saw your personal struggles. All the things I prayed for in my first comment go to each of you personally. It’s my desire to give more in action for those in situations like yours. But alas my own ‘hard’ and debilitating situation limits me greatly. Therefore, I ask the Lord of the harvest to send out workers, helpers, to each of you where you live. May he bless you with a great outpouring of love through your local community of believers!
I find myself on both sides of this love equation. I hear the call to lay down my life for the brothers who are in need. And I am also a brother (a sister) in need. Though these passages focus upon physical needs for the most part, my own experience tells me that not only can physical needs be neglected but also spiritual ones. Over the past several years, I have read and learned much through the ever growing biblical movement in which those in the core of it address what’s missing in pastoral care for what is deemed as the “hard cases”. These hard cases often fall into the realm of what is often referred to as “psychiatric disorders” by secular psychology. Though my condition of ME/CFS is not clearly defined as such as controversy over the psychological vs physiological origin continues in the medical field, because of the confusion and complexity of the illness, it seems right to call it a “hard case”. In my prayer journal today, I noted to the Lord that it can still “feel” like my situation is not fixable. But quickly I’m reminded by the Holy Spirit that nothing is impossible with my God! So in light of that hope and promise, I persist in praying for help for all the “hard cases” among us in the body of Christ. I pray for a great and intentional equipping to come through those already equipped in the biblical counseling movement to train churches everywhere to be able to come alongside us who are struggling mostly alone in our “hard case”. And as he moves nightly, may the name of our Lord Jesus Christ be exalted as the compassionate one who cares deeply for the “hard cases” and has the power to fix us!