Tag: #love

God said, “It is not good for man to be alone”. All of creation couldn’t provide a suitable remedy or solution to that so God handcrafted one for Adam. Through the covenant of marriage the two become one. Just like the Trinity: God the Father, Jesus and the Holy Spirit are one, the marriage strives for oneness of man and woman with God. The first covenant which started with Adam and Eve will culminate with the wedding covenant of the Son, Jesus with His bride, the church. The wedding covenants here on earth are just a temporal shadow of the eternal one to come. Now it is united in Christ till death separates then it will be united in Christ for eternity.

Well God looked at me and probably said the same, what He said for Adam and hence as a remedy to that, on August the 15^th 2017, I’m going to enter into a wedding covenant with Shalom Philip. India celebrates its independence on 15^th August, thus the title: “from independence to inter-dependence”. People ask me about the date and lightheartedly say that I’ll be losing my “independence” on India’s Independence Day.  Am I actually losing my independence? If it is, then it is from bachelorhood and celibacy, to enter into the freedom of marriage, from assumed independence to blissful inter-dependence.

I can reiterate the Psalmist’s confession, “This is the Lord’s doing and it is marvelous in our eyes”. I say so because it was unimaginable for me, who was born and brought up in western India to settle down with somebody from Kerala and vice versa for her. So for her, she required multiple divine confirmations before she was finally convinced that I was the one. But for me God had given me a peace about it all and once we met then I was persuaded beyond a shadow of doubt that she was to be my better or best half.

Marriage I believe brings together two imperfect and incomplete individuals who find their completeness not in each other but together in Christ.

“A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.” 

“Nothing can separate even if I run away

Your love never fails

I know I still make mistakes

But you have new mercies for me everyday

Your love never fails”

Your love never fails by Jesus Culture

When Abba had to find a parallel to illustrate His love for us he chose a mother’s love. Mother’s love is the best we humans can get as far as unconditional (agape) love is concerned. And He said that even if a mother’s love fails still mine won’t. Truly it is unconditional with an unlimited warranty. Just as a baby doesn’t have to strive to earn its mother’s love or attention similarly neither do we have to strive to achieve our Father’s love. He can’t love us more that He already does because He’s given His best-Jesus, His son to demonstrate His love.

If God loved the human race through the murder of His Son won’t He love us through our failures? If He ever kept a standard to qualify for His love then no one ever would, so He passed out an open invitation for all the mankind through His son. Love finds the way when everyone else gives excuses; it sees the gold in the garbage. But being as imperfect as we are, will we be ever worthy of such love? That’s the most fascinating part of His love: you don’t have to change for God to love you, but rather allow His love to change you! Accepting Jesus makes us worthy of the Father’s love and the Message Bible puts it beautifully in Romans 8, “I’m absolutely convinced that nothing-nothing living or dead, angelic or demonic, today or tomorrow, high or low, thinkable or unthinkable- absolutely nothing can get between us and God’s love because of the way that Jesus our Master has embraced us.”

As I grow up I’m assured of my identity and who I am in Christ but how do the people around me perceive me?  Jesus told His disciples in John 13 that in the same way that He loved them, they are supposed to love one another. Further adding He said, “This is how everyone will recognize that you are my disciples – when they see the love you have for each other” (The Message).

I have been called to love my neighbors, but wait who exactly is my neighbor?

Neighbor is my obnoxiously loud and uncouth person living next door,

Neighbor is the inhumanely demanding boss,

Neighbor is the egocentric bully, who cherishes picking on me,

Neighbor is the impatiently furious store clerk yelling at an “innocent” me,

Neighbor is the biased coach who preferred an amateur over an “experienced” me in fact my neighbors also include the lot for whom I’m as inconspicuous as a fly on the wall. My neighborhood also comprises of those who didn’t believe in me or in my dreams and who never gave me a second thought. But as if to interject my pessimistic rant something beautiful happened and it is described in John 1, “The Word (Jesus) became flesh and blood and moved into the neighborhood”.

Hanging on the cross Jesus offered forgiveness to a world which didn’t ask for it cause they never felt a need! But Jesus said, “Father, forgive them…”, before He said “It is finished”, because without forgiveness it wouldn’t be finished. He presented forgiveness before repentance and acquittal before the trial or conviction.  He epitomized love because He loved an undeserving world. I love Him because He first loved me and I love others because He showed the way.

I’m a recipient of an unmerited favor and undeserved love can I become giver of what I have freely received?

When “His love never fails, never gives up, never runs out on me and on and on it goes” (One thing remains by B Johnson & J Riddle) can I “live like there is no tomorrow and love like I’m on borrowed time” (Good to be alive by J Gray).

“If not me, tell me who will be like Jesus to the least of these” – Kings & Queens by Audio Adrenaline.

As apostle Paul puts it without love I’m just a clanging cymbal and it is by love only that I’m defined and people will know I’m His disciple and a child Of the King.