Learning

There was an ad campaign on Saturday mornings a few years ago about learning. Something like "Learning Is Fundamental."

And I have to say that learning is fun. It's exciting. It's fulfilling. And, when it's learning about Our Heavenly Father and His great love for us, it is addictive.

Abba wants us to know Him intimately. He wants us to know His love. He wants us to know Him and His love for us so well that we trust Him about everything.

I am learning that everything that we need to know about God, everything we need to know God intimately and personally, has to start with our knowledge of His love.

If we seek to learn anything about God apart from the "fundamental" knowledge that all that He does flows out of His great love for us, we will not understand it correctly.

When we read in the Bible that God is love, it is because without that foundational fact, nothing else about God makes the sense it should and will be misunderstood. That misunderstanding will make everything else we might try to know about God be just far enough off to confuse us.

Without being completely convinced of God's love, we will misinterpret much of what He does to mold us into the image of Christ.

Being molded into the image of Christ can hurt, especially for someone like me who needs a lot of molding and shaping to be anything at all like Jesus.

If I'm not fully convinced of His love and do not understand that everything He does is for my good and to help me be more and more like Jesus, then I don't understand and can even resent God when the things He does or allows into my life are painful.

But I'm learning. Everyday, I'm learning.

God loves me. Everything He does or allows in my life is because He loves me and He is at work making me, molding me into the very best person I can be.

God loves me. The goal He ultimately has for me is to be like Jesus. Did you hear that?

He loves you, too. The goal He ultimately has is for you to be like Jesus.

Me and you. Like Jesus!

How wonderful can it get?

All because He loves us.

Whatever happens today, view it through the fundamental truth that God loves you and is at work making you the best you you can be in the likeness of Christ.

If God is not working on you, ask yourself if you've ever given yourself to Him by faith in Christ and His atoning work at Calvary.

If you've not given yourself to Him, you can simply be asking Jesus to come into your heart and save you. He wants to. He died to.

Then you will know the first step of His love and you can begin the glorious journey of life with Him knowing that everything from the moment of salvation forward is a product of His love. Even the parts that hurt.

Just love Him and be convinced of His love for you.

God is love. And you are the object of that love.

In His Love
Walter