Unconditional Love

It really hit me Sunday while sitting at first service and seeing it more crowded than I have ever seen it before and hearing them say that Easter is hands down the busiest service of the year – it hit me hard the unconditional love God has for us. He sent us Jesus to teach us one thing – unconditional love.
He made it look so simple - have an open heart, an open mind and love for all, but we as humans make it so hard on ourselves. We (and yes I am included in this “we”) like to put conditions on our love to others, to ourselves, even to God.

            I would love my co-worker if she would listen to me.

            I would love the homeless man on the street if he would get a job.

            I will love myself when I lose those last 5 pounds.

            I will be happy when I get a promotion.

            I will love God again after He gives me a baby.

            Even though you are a miracle worker and have saved 1,000 of people’s lives, I can’t love  you wholly because you are Jewish, or some other religion.

            I will love my husband more once he tells me how pretty I am.

Do you see how ridiculous all these sound? Do you see how many conditions are put on something so simple, so available to us at all times if we just look in our hearts and see what God gave us – the ability to love unconditionally like he does us – but we don’t. We line up our love and dole it out to those we think deserve it, but the catch is – we deserve love from every person and every person deserves our love – and I mean all of, not a little snip of it when it is convenient for us, not a little piece of it when we feel like it- every person deserves all of our love all of the time.

Seems scary to think of this – how can I love someone who has wronged me, how can I love someone I don’t know, how can I love someone who is so different from me???

We get so caught up in the how but the how is easiest part – open your heart and love. You can’t run out of it and the more you give, the more you have to give and the more you get. Crazy little thing God gave us – unconditional love.

I try to practice what I preach, I try but sometimes it is hard…I guess if it were easy we would all be doing it – right? Try to love someone today that you might not any other day – if they aren’t there for you to show a kind smile to, give a gentle pat on the back – think of them, think of them with loving thoughts and send them love from your heart – it will make you feel amazing.

Just try it – let me know how it goes?!?!