Fully Rely On Love
"And we know and rely fully on the love God has for us. God is love.
Whoever lives in love lives in God and God in Him." 1 John 4:16 (NIV)
If you ask anyone who knows me, I'm fairly confident they would say that I am a reliable person. And, to be honest, I'm kind of proud of that. It makes me feel good that when someone asks me to do something, I follow through and get it done. I feel happy when someone looks to me to handle a tough situation, or when a friend calls to ask a favour because she knows she can depend on me. Being reliable is something I value.
I've read the above verse before, but a few days ago part of it actually stopped me in my tracks.
That morning as I was hurrying to get my four kids (and husband!) organized and out the door, amidst the noise and chaos, I was mentally going over the many things I had to do that day. My list of to-do items seemed longer than the hours I had and there were other concerns weighing heavily on my heart. I wasn't sure how I was going to get through the day and I could literally feel the weight of these burdens and responsibilities pushing down hard on my shoulders.
"I'm not sure I can do all this today Lord" I prayed.
"Then let me help you." I felt the Lord whisper gently to my heart.
My automatic response of "No thanks, I'm OK, I've got it covered" almost kicked in but I stopped myself. Just a minute here. Was I really going to say no to Jesus' offer of help for this day?! I shifted the laundry basket I was carrying and sat down at the top of the stairs to think it through. The truth of what I discovered shocked me. You see while I enjoy being a dependable and reliable source of support and encouragement for others, when it comes to my own life situations I have a strong aversion to personally relying on anyone other than myself.
Even Jesus.
I pulled out my Webster Dictionary and found that the words rely on mean "to be dependent on and to have confidence in based on experience".
I had to ask myself; do I not trust Jesus enough to be completely dependent on Him? Do I not have confidence in His sweet, unfailing love for me? I knew in my heart the answers to these questions were no. Time after time over the years and through various struggles I have faced in my life, Jesus has been my rock. Jesus has proven himself more faithful, more trustworthy and more reliable than I could have ever imagined.
As I was thinking this through, it occurred to me how different my days could be, if instead of trying to handle things myself, I laid out every thing at the feet of Jesus and relied on Him to take care of it all. The big things, the small things, the parenting questions, the health concerns, the financial fears, the chores and responsibilities, the struggles and joys of daily life.
Sitting in the stairwell, I decided to choose that day to place my trust, not in my limited abilities, but in the boundless love of Jesus, knowing that I can depend on Him for anything and everything I need. Because no matter what obstacles or challenges I face in my day, I can know and rely on His love. His solid, unchanging, never failing love for me.
Thank you Jesus that I can know and rely fully on your love. Here is my day Lord. I lay it all at your feet. Thank you that I can walk through today with you; safe and secure in the knowledge of your always perfect love for me.