One On One

Psalm 139:1 O LORD, you have searched me and you know me…
139:13 For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb.

Isn’t it wonderful to be known, and loved? God doesn’t love us in the abstract, or in a general ‘love for mankind’ sort of way. He loves each one of us as His unique creation, knit together by His loving hand. Let your heart be filled with this truth, savor it! Then ask God how you can share that love that is overflowing in you.

Since we are loved as individuals, doesn’t it make sense we should love others in the same way if we are to love others as God loves us? Look around you today at the people in your life, and marvel at how they are each “fearfully and wonderfully made” (v14). How can you love and honor them?

Each one of us has been given a variety of gifts to serve the body of Christ, so the ways we express our love will be as unique as we are. For some, it is a smile and encouraging words, for others it may be meeting physical needs, and for others it is revealing or teaching truth in a way the other person can understand. There is no one ‘right way’ to love our fellow man, as long as we are focused on loving the specific person.

For example, if someone is hungry, that might not be the best time to share a word of prophecy with him or her. A more loving response would be to feed them, even if you’re not a good cook. (A caveat here – if you cook like I do, it might be more loving to buy take-out food!) Loving someone means meeting him or her where they are, not where you are comfortable.

Loving others does NOT mean enabling them in their sin, or doing for them what they can do for themselves. It simply means to love them because God loves them, and to cherish the individual.

When we love others as God loves us, it brings us joy because that is what God designed us to do. This past weekend I had a chance to show love to someone dear to me, and we were both blessed. I did it by showing him new possibilities, and then walking with him through the first steps to reach that future. I met him where he is, and showed by my actions that he is loved as a unique and wonderful creation of our loving God. It was a good day.