Loving...

God is a being of love. Then why does it seem as though He isn't always loving?

This is what some would suggest, but I wonder if there may be part of an answer here. You see, God's love for us is always the same. He doesn't change:

NIV Hebrews 13:8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.

We are the fickle ones. But even in my evil nature, we can see a glimmer of how God's love would stay the same, yet His response to us would look differently depending upon the circumstance.

Let's say my 3 yr. old daughter, who is highly experiential, was in the kitchen as we began to cook dinner. As we turned on the stove, being the electric stove it is, it would begin to glow a bright orange color.

She might look at that color and say something like, "Daddy, look at that. Can I touch it?"

Of course, I would say "no" and make sure that my body was in between her and the burner, for her safety.

But let's just say that her interest gets the better of her 3 days later when I'm not around, and she touches the burner. She suffers burns on her hand that leave pain, sadness and tears for hours. Would that change my love for her? Of course not! Would I respond differently because of the situation...of course I would! We would need bacitracin, bandages, maybe even a trip to the hospital. I would then carry out a different supervision or protection strategy so that she could not fall into that problem again. But it wouldn't change my love for her, just my actions for her.

The same would be true for God's response to us. When we turn from Him and sin, when we fail to listen to His advice or direction, does that mean His love for me has changed? Not a bit. But He might respond differently to me for my good.

It is my hope and prayer that you understand how good God is, and how much He loves you in spite of who you are, what you think, and the things you have done. His love for us is never contingent upon our faithfulness [goodness], but His faithfulness often compels us to learn to be good and submit to the leading of His Word and Holy Spirit.

If you haven't tried that sort of life, I want to encourage you to do so. It usually doesn't seem reasonable [especially since our reasoning is usually a "worldly" type by now], but it is certainly the greatest adventure and the most exciting living I have experienced to date. I hope the same for you in these short days called life. May He bless you with an interesting one.