Love is a Sacred Trust

Oh a whim, Pop and I called the Superheroes after we had enjoyed dinner out last night.  We were not in need of any superhero feats; we just missed them and were not too far away.  We had heard they were going to see Arthur's Christmas earlier in the day and hoped to hear what the "critics" had to say about it.  So we called.  They were home...but not alone...Romeo and Pretty Princess had come for dinner. BONUS!  We got two of the four sisters in one "drive by visit."  But that is not what this post is about.

When we arrived, the superheroes greeted us warmly as did Pretty Princess and Romeo.  Then something amazing happened.  Something that possibly only I caught.  As I scooped up the Supergirl and talked to her, our eyes locked...not just for a second or two...but for a while.  This little, tiny (not yet two years old) girl...sweet, sassy, adorable little girl looked deep into my soul as I gazed upon hers through the windows we call eyes.  In just a minute or maybe a little more, we saw each other...completely...and loved each other.

This phenomenon has happened at some precious point in time with each of our children and grandchildren when they were small and it takes my breath away each time.  With each child, it is new and different, yet old and familiar, warm and comforting, just as it should be.

I awoke in the wee hours this morning thinking about it and realize that the love I have for my family, my friends, my fellow human beings is a sacred trust...just as my precious little granddaughter completely trusts me and trusts in my love...I am obligated...by my love...the love given to me by our Heavenly Father that is true and good and perfect...to give my best.  Not out of guilt.  Not because I should.  Not because of any outward manipulation. Simply because I love.

I remember the very first time I felt this kind of love for Pop. I was in the fifth grade and he was in the sixth. I had seen him before and knew who he was but one day as I met him on the stairs at school (for some reason it was just the two of us – we must have been running errands for our teachers), I saw him for the first time as someone I loved. I awkwardly said, “Hi” and he nodded. I was deeply impacted. I can still see the sunlight streaming in the window highlighting his blond hair, blue eyes, and strong shape. We didn't date until high school but God firmly planted something in my heart that day I didn't quite understand. I didn't chase after him or stake any claims; but I was filled with a sense of assurance in the way I felt about this handsome boy.

Before I give anyone the impression that I have some kind of super power on my own to love, let me just say that "We love  because He first loved us." (I John 4:19) God IS love and love originates with Him.  I am grateful for that love and grateful that He chooses to love others through us.  God's Word says it best...I John 4:7-12 says, "Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God.  Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.  Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed His love among us: He sent His one and only Son into the world that we might live through Him.  This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.  Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.  No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and His love is made complete in us."

I am so grateful to God for His love and so grateful for the ways and the times that love is visible in my life.  It is a free gift and there is a reader happening upon this post who hasn't experienced it, you are not reading by accident...God set it up...He orchestrated it...He chose to use me to convey to you right now that He loves you.  Just say "Yes" to Him.  You will never be sorry.