Quiet the noise around you; stop all of the distractions,
clear out the rambling thoughts. Focus. No really take a minute. Are you ready
now? This is important. Focus.
You are loved.
There is so much more for you.
You are loved, madly, deeply, recklessly, ravishingly, intensely.
There is so much more for you. More than fear, more than hatred, more than race, more
than sexual preference, more than labels, more than confusion, more than depression,
more than trends, more than fake news.
There is good news!
There is purpose!
There is light! Peace! Joy! Stability! Sure footing! Blessing!
Every single piece, inch, ounce, corner, dust, molecule,
star, mountain, river, tree, animal, hill is God’s creation revealing his
character, his nature, his desire, his pursuit, his charm, his reverence his
respect, his detailed plan, his focus, his drive all for you. A love note to
you. Jesus is God’s love note to you, he literally took out a billboard to show
of his love for you.
See ALL things have
purpose.
There were trees
planted, then watered, tended, nourished, and watched over so that they would
grow tall and strong
There were bushes and
ground set just so, given wild qualities to take root and strength through
growing pricked stems with provision to deter intrusion or distribution from
animals or predators.
There were animals with
life breathed into them, given masters to care over them, luscious fields to
feast in, and ample time and space to roam, be free, and become healthy and
strong.
All of these creations meticulously designed and with
extraordinary purpose.
Purpose: to brutally kill
God’s only son, Jesus.
You may be cringing at this moment and doubting the design or the purpose I described two sentences ago. Certainly you are now denying that extraordinary (defined by Webster’s
Dictionary as: going beyond what is usual, regular, or customary; exceptional
to a very marked extent; of a financial transaction, nonrecurring; employed
for or sent on a special function or service) fits the picture.
You are wrong. All of this was in pursuit of you; of your
heart. Not your routine, not your holiday Sunday attire, not your condemnation,
not your burden or obligation. NO!
Your heart!
Your attention!
Your freedom!
Your defense!
Your identity!
God knew that if he designed you in his image you needed the
ability to choose. Hopefully to choose him, but in order to do that, you needed to be fought for. You also needed to be given great and beautiful things,
worshiped. Most of all you, needed to be loved. After all it is what he desires
most, so why wouldn’t you?
At the start he set
out to woo you. Not with an everyday box of chocolates and flowers or even
diamonds, but with intricate planning, consistent chase, lavish detailing,
ceaseless attention, and the ultimate sacrifice.
He needed the thick, healthy, and strong trees.
He needed the bushes with branches of thorns.
He needed the animals. He needed these things not just to
show you what beauty and diversity he is capable of, or the strength, provision,
and care he so meticulously arranges, but to show you how purposeful he was in
his sacrifice. He set out with great intent and aforethought to give his life, that which was absolutely the most precious to him, for your life; for you. He purposed trees into a cross, thorns into a crown of thorns, and
animal leather and bones into whips. Always remember that which may appear to be insignificant, forgotten, ordinary, or even common is never so with God.
It wasn’t a last minute decision. It was an intensely
intimate precision courtship. It was necessary. God’s only son was sent
to us. He was not fashioned for this event, a little token. Jesus was God’s son
with him for all of time, through the creation of the universe and all things
on earth, through it all, but he was given away for years here with us. Jesus
was given to be brutally, viciously, and violently murdered. Proof that there
is nothing God would not give for you. Nothing that God thinks you are not
worth. You are priceless. Jesus was hung both in crucifixion and in radiant
display. It was a transaction to purchase your freedom, your ticket of attendance
with God. It was a giant billboard sign (literally posted high on a hill for all to see) of love, devotion, commitment, desire,
adoration, and victory. It is finished. There is nothing else that can or
needs to be done or labored over, this is a nonrecurring transaction with no further dues necessary or even available.. You can’t
clean up, you can’t earn his love, you can’t pay for his mercy. He
already gave everything he had to win you. Oh and win you he did, Jesus defeated Satan and returned to Earth bringing joy and hope with him. Now he waits for you, his Bride, in Heaven. Accept it! You are in! You are loved! You are
wanted! God is love, and he is in love with you.