What You Love Makes Life Worth Living
by Unknown
What get's you out of bed in the morning? Is it that perfectly brewed cup of coffee? What about the smell of fresh cut grass? Or that perfect sunny day? Life is full of things to enjoy, things to really love and look forward to.
I was reading a book this past summer at Pines about the heart. How it works, how we feel through every day life, and what love is exactly. One morning, while the sun was rising over the tops of the pine trees, making beams of light through the fog that was still rolling around, I was out on the porch reading. The author challenged his readers to make a list of things that they love. Order wasn't important. Just write down what popped into your head. Never one to deny a challenge I grabbed my journal, wrapped myself up in my blankets, and started writing. Here's what I came up with...
I looked at my list, and while I was proud of it, I was a but alarmed that there were only a few things that were outlandishly Christian. What kind of missionary was I?! Where were the sacred things? Then I took a step back and remembered "RIGHT... God made every good thing...". Everything good about the world, the things that get you out of bed, the things that get your heart beating faster, He made them.
Now you can give me grief. You can ask me "Trinda, how can you find Jesus in a pair of new socks?!" Well lemme tell ya! Those things that you love reveal God to you because God is Love. He doesn't just love you, or teach us how to love. He is, in fact, love itself. He can't not love because everything about love is Him. He is Love. (What a roller coaster of a paragraph! OH I also love roller coasters ;) )
We all experience love different. Your list may be different than mine, and I'm pretty weird, so it probably is! haha. That doesn't change the way your list makes you feel. It's what wakes you up and keeps you going. It's what gets you excited. Love is exciting. And what you love makes your life worth living.
God knew what he was doing when he made the world. Imagine a world without taste. Sure, we would probably still eat, but where would the joy in that come from? For people who love to cook, something that draws them into the heart of God would be gone. What about a world without colours, or animals, or books, or candy! The world we live on is a crazy melting pot of new opportunities to see God and understand Love in a new way. The next time you find something new to love, look for God in it and thank Him for it, because God made your life worth living.
I was reading a book this past summer at Pines about the heart. How it works, how we feel through every day life, and what love is exactly. One morning, while the sun was rising over the tops of the pine trees, making beams of light through the fog that was still rolling around, I was out on the porch reading. The author challenged his readers to make a list of things that they love. Order wasn't important. Just write down what popped into your head. Never one to deny a challenge I grabbed my journal, wrapped myself up in my blankets, and started writing. Here's what I came up with...
- Sand in my toes
- Wind in my hair
- Hugs
- Sunrise
- Sunset
- Travelling
- Green Grass
- Wandering in the woods
- Swimming at night
- Holding hands
- Putting on warm laundry
- Reading good books
- Jumping into cold water
- Being competitive
- Eating ice cream out of the tub
- Jesus
- Daises
- Giving and receiving gifts
- Driving fast
- Running through sprinklers
- Listening to music really loud
- Negative film rolls
- Being joyful
- Laughing until you cry
- Stargazing
- Worship
- Cold mornings
- Lying in the sun
- Fresh cut grass
- Fresh baking
- Bass
- Video Games
- Trampolines
- Eating good food
- Being encouraged and encouraging others
- Dressing up
- Midnight picnics
- Surprises
- Fuzzy PJ's
- Cuddles
- New socks
- Sleeping in
I looked at my list, and while I was proud of it, I was a but alarmed that there were only a few things that were outlandishly Christian. What kind of missionary was I?! Where were the sacred things? Then I took a step back and remembered "RIGHT... God made every good thing...". Everything good about the world, the things that get you out of bed, the things that get your heart beating faster, He made them.
Now you can give me grief. You can ask me "Trinda, how can you find Jesus in a pair of new socks?!" Well lemme tell ya! Those things that you love reveal God to you because God is Love. He doesn't just love you, or teach us how to love. He is, in fact, love itself. He can't not love because everything about love is Him. He is Love. (What a roller coaster of a paragraph! OH I also love roller coasters ;) )
We all experience love different. Your list may be different than mine, and I'm pretty weird, so it probably is! haha. That doesn't change the way your list makes you feel. It's what wakes you up and keeps you going. It's what gets you excited. Love is exciting. And what you love makes your life worth living.
God knew what he was doing when he made the world. Imagine a world without taste. Sure, we would probably still eat, but where would the joy in that come from? For people who love to cook, something that draws them into the heart of God would be gone. What about a world without colours, or animals, or books, or candy! The world we live on is a crazy melting pot of new opportunities to see God and understand Love in a new way. The next time you find something new to love, look for God in it and thank Him for it, because God made your life worth living.
What was the name of the book you were reading?
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