"Yook (look) Mommy," Kaleb said darting toward me, "I made you a pitchow (picture)." He excitedly handed me a sheet of paper with a proud smile on his face. He had drawn a few circles and scribbles on his paper in gray pencil. "Oh wow!" I said grinning, "Good job Kaleb." Then I gave him a high five. I felt the warmth of his hand-- the Tylenol hadn't completely rid him of his fever. I gave Kaleb a thumbs up to express my approval.
Once he knew I was pleased, he said, "You tan (can) teep (keep) it," and then bounced away feeling perfectly happy, because Mommy approved of his work. All he cared about in that moment, was pleasing me.
Now, Kaleb wasn't doing so well yesterday. That nagging cold was wearing on him, but still, that didn't stop him from wanting to make me happy. At that very moment, I thought to myself, "What if we loved God the same way... consistently?"
Unfortunately, that typically isn't the case. We all have been guilty at some point, of loving God conditionally. When all goes well in our lives, we gladly proclaim His sovereignty. But when things go topsy-turvy, we begin questioning His deity. When we're feeling good about what God is doing with us, we celebrate Him. But when we feel neglected, hurt, rejected and beat up by life, often, we lose that celebratory attitude and grow resentful.
But we can't be like that. We need to be consistent. Our love for God, as well as our devotion and praise, can't be contingent upon our circumstances. Even though situations continually change, our commitment to pleasing the Father and loving Him unconditionally, must not.
When's the last time you were going through a burdensome struggle and fell down on your knees and said, "God I just want to worship you"? Can you remember a time when your heart was broken and you still said, "God you're worthy of my praise"? Do you ever recall a day when you felt so unhappy and heavy laden and told God, "Your happiness is my happiness. God it pleases me to please you"? That, my friend, is sacrificial love.
That's the kind God wants; that's the kind that pleases Him; that's the kind He gave to us when He sent His only son Jesus to die for our sins. Do you have that kind of love for God? Is your love consistent or contingent? Is it steady, or does it fluctuate based on your circumstances?
It's easy to pour our love on Him when all is well, right? But the real test comes when things go haywire. That's when we discover where we really stand.
So today, I admonish you to give God thanks and praise no matter what comes your way--good or bad. Give your love to God at all times. Even when things go sour, don't snatch your love away. Tell God what Kaleb told me... "You tan (can) teep (keep) it."
As always, thanks for reading, and until next time... may you be empowered to prosper!
Dianna Hobbs
www.eewmagazine.com
