For the mountains shall depart and the hills be removed, but My kindness shall not depart from you, nor shall My covenant of peace be removed, says the Lord, who has mercy on you. (Isa 54:10). If you don’t feel loved by God, you will struggle to show love to others. Loving people is easy when you understand and remember how God loves you. Daily, you need to remind yourself what God thinks about you, not what the world thinks or what you think about yourself. You are completely accepted. You may have spent much of your life trying to earn acceptance from your parents, peers, those you respect, those you envy, and even total strangers. But you need to realize God has already settled this issue of acceptance. Jesus made us acceptable to God. (Titus 3:7)
What Jesus did on the cross made you utterly acceptable to God—no matter what you have done or will do. “Love never stops being patient, never stops believing, never stops hoping, never give up.” (1 Cor 13:7). If you are a follower of Christ, you must love everybody in the same way that Jesus loves you. That means you are to accept them completely, love them unconditionally, forgive them totally, and consider them extremely valuable —whether you like them or not. It’s not an option or a suggestion; it’s a command. “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.” (Jn 13:34). Loving others in this way will transform your relationships. 1 Corinthians 13:7 shows us how God loves us. He never stops being patient with you. He never stops hoping for the best in your life. He never gives up on you. And God wants you to love others the same way. Love never stops being patient. Love extends grace so you can offer grace to others.
