One of the many things I’m learning right now is how to love. Not just the kind of love where you do nice things for someone, or say encouraging words, or listen attentively. I’m learning how to actually love, even when it’s hard and even when it hurts. God has been showing me how selfish I am; how my motives and actions almost always point back to myself. I want people to like me. I REALLY want people to like me. My actions and words often are said and done in order to please others for my own benefit instead of pleasing God for their benefit and his glory. But actually loving others means being willing to say things people don’t want to hear. It means being willing to be disliked or even hated by others if that’s what happens when you speak truth to them. It’s hard to give up my own desires and need for approval in order to help others, especially when I don’t see positive outcomes right away. But my job isn’t about me at all. It’s about pointing others to Christ. If by doing that I have to give up my desire for approval and love, I will do it to the best of my ability. This is a lesson I just started learning, and have to re-learn every day. But it is a blessing that God is guiding me through it.
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