How He Loves

If you haven't heard the song from which this entry was named, you either just aren't really into this stuff, or you live under a rock...or both. Either way, I have been thinking about this song all week and just how powerful it really has been for so many. So on some level I'm not entirely sure that anything I would really have to say on the matter would be new or fresh for anybody.

Before I get into this, the story behind is is really fantastic, this video kind of helps explain a bit...

So I've known about this song for quite awhile now. I've heard it a ton of times, I've led it at church, and it's just kind of been another of our worship songs for awhile now. There was never anything especially profound or fascinating to me about the lyrics because the fact that He loves us is just sort of John 3:16 stuff I've known and understood for my entire life.

Somehow this past Sunday as this video I just linked was playing at Willard Alliance, John Mark McMillan sort of discusses how His love is there no matter how messy and hard it gets for us. My love is nothing like that. I think sometimes about how many times I've seen Christians just choose not to love so many other people because it's just too hard sometimes and a lot of the time there's just nothing to be gained from loving those people. I've done it myself. But God never has, in spite of having way more reason to than me.

As I got to thinking about this I really badly wanted to sing it one time now that I had "gotten" it. Next thing you know Dan is up there leading it, and I just kind of lost it a little. I mean...I can be a little emotional, but I've led this song a bunch of time and never had to fight back tears, and now amongst all of these people I don't know suddenly I couldn't hold it all in.

I'd spent the last week wondering how a loving God can send so many of his people into so many painful situations. I mean...it just seemed so unfair that in my life it seems like He always seems to be leading me on wild goose chases that leave me empty. I give so much to the people around me, expecting nothing back...just trying to do the right thing. And eventually you can get to a point where you just look up and say why? I mean...why is it that even thinking about doing the selfish thing makes my heart hurt, but so many of the good people whom I love and respect around me can do the selfish thing so easily and always seem to be blessed for it?

But then there's the cross...

Then there's people like John Mark McMillan who write life changing songs in the midst of tragedy...

Then there's Cheryl, and Larry, and Troy...maybe you don't actually know those names...but we all know people who remind us we've never really known real difficulty in life the way they have.

Who am I to question God's love?

So now I sing with different thoughts in my head...maybe I'm out of tune, maybe I will mess up the order or the words, maybe something happened that day that has left me a little broken, maybe I have really screwed up and I feel so guilty that there is no way He could possibly love me that day. Either way His love is unconditional, and eternal, and none of the things I've given my stress or my guilt to on that particular day will change a thing about me the way He could.