Messy Love

This morning I pulled into Wal-Mart and as I parked, I heard a very loud, ringing bell. The sound seemed similar to that of a fire alarm, so my eyes scanned the area for unusual activity. I saw nothing abnormal, so I proceeded into the store. I expected to see or hear chaos or receive some sort of acknowledgment or explanation for the disruption. Instead, I was greeted by normal activity. In fact, everything seemed so normal that I began to wonder if I was the only one who could hear the obnoxiously loud bell ringing from the entrance!

Isn't that how the messiness of life is? We have the obnoxious, blatant reminders of our shortcomings blowing up in our faces and yet we somehow seem to tune it out, ignore it, and continue on as normal. I'm talking about our misbehaving children, a difficult diagnosis, a crumbling marriage, financial pressures, discontentment, jealousy, rage. We hide it all too well. Our insides are falling apart, but we plaster on that smile and say all is well. We capture the highlight reel of our lives and share it. But those deep, dark, struggles and secrets, we just push down and ignore.

The sermon at my church on Sunday reminded me that Christ willingly and lovingly entered the world to pursue us in the midst of our messiness. There was even messiness in the Upper Room during Christ's Last Supper! But that didn't stop Christ from pursuing a loving relationship with each of His friends. Their messiness didn't scare Him because His love was that great.

As my devotional by Holley Gerth from Girlfriends in God reminded me this morning: "Nothing can separate me from God's love. Neither messy kitchens nor dirty dishes, neither stressful deadlines or chaotic travel, neither all I have to do today or what's on my schedule for tomorrow-not even the lie of the enemy saying 'You are a failure' can separate me from God's love."

Let the truth from Romans 8:38-39 sink into your mind and your heart: "For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Friends, there is no need to hide anymore. God looks at everything in our complex lives and our shame-filled hearts and whispers, without hesitation, "Beloved!" Friends, you are not alone either! There is so much freedom to be experienced when we learn to be open and vulnerable with others about our struggles. Don't let Satan's lies of exposure rob you from the joy and freedom that can be found by walking with others through the mutual pains and hurts of life.

If you're like me, music often has a way of deepening the message that my heart seems to be hearing. This song played on my radio this morning and it seemed to be yet another reminder for me to open up and involve others in my messiness. Even more importantly, I need to fully grasp Christ's undying love for me. It's not something to be earned and can never be lost. It's a love that loves me, just as I am.