One of my sons spoke of always being aware that his grandmother
delighted in him.
It’s a precious thing, to be aware that somebody loves you.
Not everybody experiences that.
I’ve been thinking a lot about that lately. How does it
happen that you become aware that you are loved?
It might be because someone tells you, straight up, and that’s good. We
ought to hear it, and we ought to say it. But just saying it doesn’t make it
so. There are people who start their criticism with “You know I love you…” and
then they tear you to shreds.
Being aware that you’re loved might come from the way someone
has sacrificed for you, and from being sure they would do so again. But it has
to mean more than that. Some people sacrifice because they know it’s their
duty, but they don’t really cherish the ones they sacrifice for.
Maybe cherish is a good word. My son’s perception that his
grandmother delighted in him meant a lot. More than just doing right by someone, it's enjoying them, and wanting to be around them. I wonder if
you really love someone if you don’t long to be with them.
And it probably includes not just being with them, but actually knowing
them. Trying to understand someone - their unique slant on things, what they enjoy, prefer, or avoid - is truly an act of love.
One of the greatest joys of being a Christian is the
awareness that Christ loves you. When it dawns on you that Jesus loves you, that He chose you, that’s a wonderful moment.
That awareness comes from a lot of things. From His saying
so, in His word. From His sacrifice. And also from the truth that He cherishes you, delights in you, wants to be with you and understands you completely,.
You can go through your whole life living in the glow of
that wonderful awareness – that you are loved and chosen by the best Person who ever
lived.
If you think of how wonderful it feels to be aware that
someone loves you, how many people in your life have the blessing of that
awareness from you?
And one other question: does Jesus live in the awareness
that you love Him ?
