Moving and Consuming

Happy Valentine's Day!  Not that I really care about this holiday since I think you should show people the same amount of love everyday, but it was kinda fun giving my kiddos a small present this morning. 

I've been thinking a lot about love lately, but not because of Valentine's Day.  I have this CD by the Sidewalk Prophets and absolutely love it.  It is one of my favorites because the lyrics are so full of truth.  You see, God has really convicted me about my love for Him.  When I accepted Christ on September 21, 1990 (I'm thankful my mom made me remember my day of salvation because it's fun to celebrate my spiritual birthday), I was only 7 years old.  I know without a shadow of a doubt that I was a Christian because I believed and my heart and actions were different.  Not that they could have been horrid at that age (although now I see that it could have been), but I had a heart-change.  Over my life, I have professed that I love my Lord with all my heart, soul, and mind.  But do I really?

The honest answer is that I try to love the Lord and I truly want to love the Lord that much and some days I do and other days I fail to show God's love to those closest to me.  But it's not always easy to abandon things that we love for the purpose of Christ, such as those material items that seem to creep in as idols, or that extra money that can be used for shopping instead of ministering to someone else.  Those are all just examples, but we all have something in our lives that we struggle with that has the tendency to be put #1 if we don't stay constantly aware of it's power to climb the scale to first.

When I heard this song, it made me cry because of the chorus.  "When did love become unmoving?  When did love become unconsuming?  Forgetting what the world has told me, Father of love, You can have me, You can have me."  That's all God wants from me.  Just me.  Simple old me.  Me that messes up and makes mistakes.  Me and all my weaknesses.  Me.  That's not what the world teaches us about loving Christ, though.  The world says that if we love Christ, He will give us more, that bad things "won't happen to good people," etc.  Why are we unmoved when we proclaim our love for Christ?  It seems to roll off people's tongues in the same sentences as cursing or taking God's name in vain.  Please don't take this as I mean I'm too good and judgmental.  Believe me, I have my failures.  This is just where God is speaking to me.  I can yell at my kids and say I love Jesus but do my words and actions line up at home with my little ones who are forming their own opinion about Jesus?  How do I want them to love Jesus?  Do I want it to just be a proclaimation or do I want it to be a heartfelt soul-stirring kind of love?  Love without abandon. 

God wants us to love Him with all that we have and all that we are.  When we love Him that much and spend time with Him, we won't be able to help being moved or consumed by Him and His ways.  I love when God speaks to me and shows me my failures and not just the warm fuzzy feelings and the "atta boys."  I know I'm not perfect, but there's nothing like knowing God's revealing something to you for a reason, whether we know the reason or not.

So, with that said, does God have you?

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You Can Have Me

I saw You on the street

And You said come and follow me

But I had to give up everything

All I once held dear and all of my dreams

Would I love You enough to let go

Or would my love run dry

When You asked for my life

When did love become unmoving?

When did love become unconsuming?

Forgetting what the world has told me

Father of love, You can have me

You can have me

If You’re all You claim to be

Then I’m not losing anything

So I will crawl upon my knees

Just to know the joy of suffering

I will love You enough to let go

Lord, I give you my life

I give you my life

When did love become unmoving?

When did love become unconsuming?

Forgetting what the world has told me

Father of love, You can have me

You can have me

I want to be where You are

I’m running into Your arms

And I will never look back

So Jesus, here is my heart

When did love become unmoving?

When did love become unconsuming?

Forgetting what the world has told me

Father of love, You can have me

You can have me