Yesterday, this verse: “Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children” (Eph 5:1).

The child imitates almost unconsciously the parent she’s drawn close to, the parent she spends time with, the parent whose love she realizes is actual, and reliable.

So, for today, this: To imitate this way, as a dearly loved child, how important it is that we realize as soul-deep as possible the great love with which our God loves us.

Therefore, these two short verses to think on today (samples among thousands proclaiming His love):

“I have loved you with an everlasting love. Therefore with lovingkindness I have drawn you” (Jer 31:3 NIV)

“Greater love has no one than this: that he lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13 NIV).

And this except from Paul’s prayer in Ephesians:

“Therefore I bend the knee before the Father… [praying] that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what [is] the width and the length and the depth and the height — to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God” (Eph 3:17-19).

May you know the certainty of His love. May you feel His love for you today.

…..

Thanking Him for these gifts:

~His unfailing love,

~The lovingkindness with which He’s drawn me,

~The blessedness of a weekend spent in reorienting toward His love,

~Wind in pine trees,

~Birdsong in meadows,

~Sunlight on raindrops,

~Warmth on the front porch.

~Reminders in my daily life of His love-giving on the cross.

…..

Counting more REASONS, in Himself, TO WORSHIP HIM:

127 – (Because) He so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, so that whoever believes in Him shall have eternal life

128 – (Because) No one has greater love than His

129 – (Because) God is love.

130 – (Because) He loves with an everlasting love

131 – (Because) With lovingkindness He has drawn us to Him

132 – (Because) His love surpasses understanding

133 – (Because) before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that His hour had come that He should depart from this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end (Jhn 13:1)

134 –  (Because) God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us (Rom 5:8)

135 – (Because) “the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us” (Rom 5:5)

136 – (Because) The Holy Spirit has been given to us (Rom 5:5)

Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!

*****

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17 thoughts on “As Dearly Loved”

  1. Beautiful pics of the bleeding hearts.
    Romans 5:5 a perfect verse for an overlay.
    Thanks for sharing these,
    Felecia

  2. Yes, Felecia, it is! The bleeding hearts seemingly pouring out, as our hearts pour out what He pours in! Thanks for lovely insight.

  3. Hi Sylvia – I am seeing so many blogs on love. Think maybe God is talking to me? Great post
    God bless
    Tracy

    1. Yep, Tracy, that’s how He does! The message here is about how much He loves us. Maybe He’s just giving you a timely reminder, a “hug” you need?

  5. That passage from Ephesians is one of my favorites. I will spend eternity comprehending his love. Your photos are beautiful!

    1. Hi Christina,
      What a wonderful thing that will be, comprehending His love through eternity!

  6. Thank you for sharing these Scriptures today. It’s amazing how His Word speaks so much deeper to my soul than any other words I’ve ever heard, how His words are so much better than mine will ever be. And to know of that love – great, everlasting love, love that passes knowledge – how great and how wonderful! Thank you so, so much for sharing this!

    1. Hi Mary,
      It’s soul-deep stuff, those scriptures. Your words enrich me, too! Blessings to you!

  7. I love that verse from Ephesians and I pray it for people often.

    By the way, would you like to be part of the SDG small groups? It entails visiting the same 6 women each week as they link up at SDG. If so, will you send me an email?

    1. Hi Jen,
      I think that Ephesians passage is one of the most precious prayers in scripture. Thanks for stopping by, and for invite. I’ll email you later today.

    1. Hi Sue,
      Visiting your site, I thought, well, you’re probably doing a lot along those lines already. It’s just not so easy to see when you’re in the middle of it. Homeschooling itself tends to make for closer relationships between parent and child, through time, than does sending them off to be raised in (and by?) groups of peers and to bond with and confide in outside adults in place of you. Ann VosKamp mentioned something like that recently in a post about why homeschool.

      I think you see the evidence more later on, when those kids you wrangled with want to sit up late into the night talking with you, maybe more than with anyone else — in your physical presence, or on the phone because they’ve grown and gone, because you’re still the one they can best confide in. Even the previous prodigals over whom your heart aches and breaks excruciatingly for a time.

      I think the big thing is not to let other seemingly good stuff crowd out the opportunities to interact with them *alone* now, while they’re still around. So many siren calls can draw us away from that and rob us all. I was surprised to hear a leading Christian psychologist (Kevin Leman?) a couple years ago on Focus on the Family, speaking about child raising, say too much peer group activity, even church youth group stuff and such, “isn’t good for them”! He said the best social interaction is usually right in their own home and family, that they need the security and stability it offers, and the opportunity to develop strong bonds and family roots — or something to that effect.

      As homeschoolers we get so many questions about “socialization” (often accompanied by funny looks) that I think it sometimes drives us to provide more group activity than they need. Probably more important than just how much outside activity to provide is making sure you give them the time at home to explore on their own who God made them to be and to just “be” with family, with you. And for you to *just enjoy them* — something we forget in our parental seriousness, only to regret later.

      A lot of words here. This should be a post. But, I guess if I were going to give any advice, based on all my stumbling-around learning from experience, it would be to make time, and guard that time, to just plain *enjoy* them individually, to just enjoy their company, while you’ve still got it.

  10. Oh, those bleeding hearts! And those verses? Reading them this morning is like a sweet hug from our Creator. Lovely.

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