Love Them

We all like to love, when others love us. It feels good and fills us with a sense of value and security. But how do we respond to hurt gnaws at our heart. When the pain of rejection is likened to drowning in icy cold waters, you feel so weak that you are unable to will your lungs to breathe, let alone love.

When your heart is so shattered that you wonder how you will ever survive the waves of grief that buckle your knees and cause you to fall on your face in sorrowful sobs. How then do you love the person who caused your pain?

In the midst of overwhelming pain Jesus spoke into my darkest hour and gently whispered these words. "Love them".

In and of myself, I couldn't even love myself let alone those who had hurt me so deeply. Yet I knew that Jesus had forgiven me so I needed to find a way to not only forgive but love those who hated me, bless those who curse me and pray for those who crushed me.

On my knees, with tears burning down my face once again, I surrendered. I asked God how I could love. In my heart of hearts I knew the answer was simple. As they slandered me I would honor them. As they stole from me I would give freely in return. As they shattered my heart I would pray that God would restore their hidden brokeness. As they rejected me I would I would love them all the more for the incredible gift they had unknowingly  given me. They gave me the previous opportunity to experience what God experiences continually, the ability to love a lost and broken world knowing you may not ever be loved in return.