Love is not Average, Loneliness is.

For a couple of weeks now I have been working in a preschool/daycare owned and operated by my college known as Campus Kinderhaus.  It's been an incredible experience so far hanging out with four, five and six year old kids and seeing the genuine smiles on their faces when they make booby traps with wooden blocks.  One of their "assignments" for a few minutes was to write down why they loved a teacher in their class and to draw/color something that represented that reason.  Some kids wrote down that they loved their teacher because they liked them or that the teacher like flowers.  They would then draw flowers like daisies, sunflowers and roses.  Some of you reading this may think that this is the cutest thing in the world and who would disagree?  It's wonderful to think about the funny answers that these kids gave but adults aren't too far off with their answers either.  We love our spouses for money, for sex, for looks, for fame, for feelings, for security, for religious reasons, for cultural reasons, for personal reasons, and for anything else you can think of.  Not all are bad or good but some of the answers seem rather silly don't you think?  Why not love because of love?

I mean, we see it in movies, television shows, the tabloids on the shelves of grocery stores and the billboards on every major highway.  We hear it among the social groups of young and old, songs from every generation and from those who played the game...and lost.  We read about it in romantic novels, autobiographies and even in newspapers.  Love has taken the form of every conversation, social media tool, song lyric, and video in our culture today.  Marriages have been on the brink of divorce because it was MIA (Missing in Action)  Relationships have been broken and ended because of the lack of knowledge of how to sustain it.      Churches have been named fake or hypocritical because of their lack of application of this word.  Four letter and one syllable - this is the word that has rocked the world from the highest of heights to the depths of the seas.  For thousands of years, we can still find ways to try to reinvent this word into a sentence, a phrase, a culture, a principle, a moral dilemma, an ethical decision, a choice, an obligation, a movie, an article, a song, a book, etc.  I know that this is becoming a little repetitious but bear with me.

One things stands clear to me when I think about this word "love".  I strongly believe with all of my heart that love is the most powerful force to exist and preexist.  Think about it.  Humans are relational are we not?  In a past study about the importance of contact, there was an experiment done with a baby monkey and two robotic representations of its mother.  One "mother" was simply metal but had a bottle of milk.  The other "mother" had warm fur over it's metal exterior.  When the monkey got extremely hungry, who did it go to first?  It went to the second mother.  As the scientist suggested, the monkey would choose physical contact with the warm robot mother over the cold one with the milk.  It wasn't until the monkey couldn't handle it anymore that it went to the robot with the milk to maintain its existence.

Interesting isn't it?  The monkey chose on the brink of starvation, warmth and comfort over physical needs.  There have been studies done with babies that have been neglected of physical comfort or touch and needless to say that it has scarred these babies for their lives.  Their view of love is warmth or genuine affection.  Solitude and love are like enemies in the world of human nature.  We are relational creatures and so we need love above physical limitations.  We desire presence of a loved one over physical or tangible representations of them.  Let's say it was Valentines Day, the celebration of love all over the U.S. and maybe the world I don't know.  Wouldn't you rather see your spouse or loved one rather than a card or flowers.  Sure, flowers, candy and a card would be nice but having them there is much more meaningful.  Otherwise, wouldn't you rather just buy those things yourself?  Maybe the day after if you wanted to save money.  The presence of love is so powerful that it has the ability to change lives!  The presence of love at home changes the lives of kids.  The presence of love in a church brings about passion and purpose.  The presence of love in a person's heart keeps them alive and brings hope.  Love is not simply just a physical thing.  Once the money and sex are gone, how do you sustain the love you made if love were only physical?  Because we absolutely need love over food and water and other bodily needs, it says to me that love is above and beyond anything physical.  

I can only speculate and think that the worst suffering for human beings is absolute solitude.  The deepest wound you can experience in this life if that of complete and utter loneliness.  Being alone in this world both physically, emotionally and spiritually is simply hell.  Humans cannot endure such a pain as this.  Take a look at Jesus.  The man knew that he was going to be crucified, one of the worst ways to die.  He was beyond stressed and hurt throughout the entire process of anticipating it, enduring the torture, and carrying the cross to his death site.  He had even began to sweat blood.  This happens only under extreme stress.  Taking on the the sins of the world - past, present and future - yeah, seems like A LOT OF STRESS!  But the worst part of all is right before he died He spoke the words, "Father, why have you forsaken me?"  A lot of disciples weren't there, only his mother and a few other people who loved him.  Jesus shows his human side in uttering these words.  His Dad wasn't there to save Him.  Think about it, Jesus didn't complain during his torture or even rebuke those hurting him.  BUT, he was so hurt by the notion that God had forsaken him.  What if the love of your life didn't come to your rescue?  The feeling is much worse than death, wouldn't you agree?  

The feeling of loneliness brings with it hopelessness.  But love brings hope, peace, joy, mercy, grace, and strength to endure.  It wasn't that God didn't love Jesus, but it was needed to save the sins of the world that He had to turn away.  What does that say about us?  GOD LOVES YOU!  What a bold statement from one who proclaimed that HE HIMSELF IS LOVE!  Only in Christianity does it say that GOD IS LOVE!  And, this God loves you.  He loves me.  He loves your roommate.  He loves you parents.  He loves us all and He proved it through Jesus' death on the cross.

A song that I would like to share with you that I heard today in church is called "Here in Your Presence".  In the presence of love, things happen.  If you have ever experienced love before, you understand what I mean.  It is an indescribable satisfaction like none other.  Love is second to none.  Love is not average, even though it may seem it when we listen to the latest songs on the radio or read those romantic novels.  Love is the only thing worth living for on this earth.  God is love.  And without love, we can do nothing.  Without love, there's solitude and loneliness.  The presence of love drives the darkness away.  I encourage you to show this incredible love to everyone you meet in your words and actions.  This sort of love that Jesus showed to us on the cross, is so contagious that we cannot simply hoard it for ourselves.  Be there for somebody at their game or debate match.  Be present at their graduation from middle school.  Be present at their reading of Scripture on Sunday morning.  Be present in their worst times of suffering by holding there hand or hugging them.  Be present physically, emotionally and spiritually.  Love cares.  Love cares about you.  God is love.  He cares about you.  He's there no matter what.  Love is with you, wherever you go.  What an incredible thought to think about each day.  Why not tell someone about it today?  Why not tell someone you love them today?  Why not show this love to someone today?  Choose to love today, because tomorrow may never come for someone who needed it.    

Ordinary is not Average

So, God made everyone in His own image right?  Does this mean that we are good looking?  Does it mean God is a nerd?  Does it mean that God is a hipster?  Does it mean that we are losers?  What does this all mean?  I'm not here to give you some deep and profound meaning behind all of this.  Like many, if not all of you reading, I'm not perfect.  Big shocker there.  But let's really actually think about this for a second.  If we are created in God's image, then what does God look like?  How should I view myself after knowing what God looks like?  And last but not least, am I viewing myself in the mirror as what God thinks of me?

What does God look like?  Comments anyone?  If you get it right, you should be on the cover of magazines because clearly you have all the answers.  I think that image doesn't necessarily just mean physical appearance.  It could mean His personality or the manner He carries himself.  If we could imagine what God would look like today, the image we would get is mirrored by His followers.  That's right!  According to what a lot of people see on a daily basis, He would look jealous, envious, shameful, hypocritical, pathetic, fake, impatient, etc.  The list goes on and on.  He would look like an absolute mess because of the fact that:

1.  We are not perfect.  Take this anyway you want but fact is fact.

2.  We don't know how to play follow the leader.  

Like kids, we have a small attention span.  As God is showing us how to follow Him, we see a butterfly called lust and decide to try and catch it.  Not knowing that the harder we try to capture it, the farther we stray from the path.

3.  We like to play the blame game.  

Adam is to blame because He sinned first.  The President is to blame because he's not doing anything for the economy.  Terrorists are to blame because we wouldn't be in this mess if 9/11 never happened.  My parents are to blame because I don't have my new iPhone to impress my friends at school.  The church is to blame because they are so fake in living for this Jesus guy.  The police is to blame because they don't catch the bad guys.  The justice system is to blame because they are not keeping the bad guys in jail for the amount of time I want them there.  We blame everything on everyone else and believe that we can do nothing about it.

I hear more people complaining more about gas prices then try to resolve other issues that are just as bad.  College tuition goes up 10-20% and nobody says anything.  And what happens to these graduates who were pressured four years ago to get a college degree?  You'd see a handful of jobs with a barrel filled with applications and resumes.  Yet, gas price goes up a nickel and people start to riot.  

Sorry that I got off on a tangent.  Just a little frustrated because I too am going to be a college graduate next Spring.  I pray that God provides.

Anyway, back to what we were talking about.  

The image of God is that of perfection, holiness, love, justice, grace, mercy, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, peace, self-control, joy, gentleness,  

passion, and so much more.

God created us to look like Him, to look like His very nature.  It looks pretty darn good right?

So, the question is, what do I do with the knowledge of what God looks like?  If He is love, and love is very attractive to anybody, then I should look like love.  Well how do I do that?  Maybe, just maybe, we should learn to love others.  And not only that, but ourselves too.  WHAT?!

I know, your minds are totally blown but bear with me now.

When people look at Christians, they should see love.  It could take on the form of random acts of kindness, feeding the homeless and the poor, hugging a friend in need, smiling, being patient, etc.  This is not something profound but simple.  But, even the simple things in life are still hard to do isn't it?  It's hard to love this annoying person in my class or workplace.  It's hard to smile when I'm really hurting inside.  It's hard to give someone my hard earned money.  It's hard to hug this person because they hurt me before and I want them to feel how I feel.  Jesus didn't say it was going to be easy to follow Him.  And even if it were easy to love, would you?  Let's be honest, we can water down Christianity but at the end of the day, what will it look like?  Pretty gross and unattractive I think.

God considers us, the church, to be: 
More than conquerors, warriors, His people, His friends, and His children.  I could imagine Him looking at us and saying, "This is wicked good.  I made a cool one right here.  You are going to be awesome like the other billions before you.  I don't make mistakes or junk.  Be sure to remember that."

The question is, do you see it?  Do I see it in myself?  Does your family see it?  Do your friends see it?  Do the people on the second floor of your apartment or dorm see it?  God is anything but ordinary.  You aren't either.  The Holy Spirit living in you is not ordinary.  You know what's ordinary or average?  Not repenting.  


Seeing is believing as many would say.  So, if you see that God is awesome.  Believe that he made you to be too.  Search for the truth, know it, believe it, and spread it around.  Someone out there is waiting to know that they too are made to be more than just a body and a brain.  They want to know that they are beautiful or handsome.  They want to know that they are not failures or pathetic.  They want to be loved just like the rest of us.  God loves you, me, everyone on this planet.  He says that we're not ordinary.  He thinks we're some pretty cool people.  He sees in us, something extraordinary.  Isn't it about time we see that?