What If…?

 

Jesus said unto him [a Pharisee], Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself (Matthew 22:37-38, KJV).

 

A piece of writing I came across on Pinterest asks some thought-provoking, heart-searching questions, including these:  “What if God stopped loving and caring for us because we failed to love and care for others? What if God answered our prayers the way we answered His call to service?” 

If God reacted to us that way, we’d be in a real mess, wouldn’t we? But since our God is loving, merciful, forgiving, and gracious….to us, we feel so secure in His love that we erroneously assume we have His permission to behave any way we please, including failing to love and care for others in the manner He loves and cares for us. Like immature children, we happily receive good from our Father and then go our merry way, often failing to extend to others the same kind of love and care God showers upon us day after day and year after year.

Oh, may the words in this wonderful hymn become the cry of our heart: O To Be Like Thee. 

Father, please forgive us for our lack of desire to honor and please You. Forgive us for our lack of concern for others. Forgive us for taking Your amazing grace for granted.

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