Imagine a love so hope-filled it
refuses the reaction of hurt or resentment at the foot of betrayal.
Such a love is understandably hurt
in its humanness, but it draws strength from God by hoping enough to respond
well. Hurt doesn’t need to convey hurt, if hurt can be absorbed by the power of hope-filled love!
The more comprehensively love is
surrendered the more cogent it is in its inspired reactions of grace.
There, alone, is evidence of the
miracle—the God invasion of power to infuse a response beyond the human,
flesh-filled default.
Such a love, powerful in grace,
superior to human thought and weakness of human feeling, is an aggressive love;
a love so opposed to actual aggression it cannot see the opportunity to react angrily.
God has protected it, though love can see causes for anger as a possible
response for others, so as to not judge the angry.
This aggressive form of love is
perfect as Jesus is perfect.
Not that, we, the purveyor of such
love, are perfect—not by any means. But love is a garment, and, with the
provision of God’s grace, we are adorned in it.
We are sanctified in this love.
And once this love has swept through our beings we’re changed for all time.
There is no reversal (praise God) into backsliding for those who have searched
and searched and have now found.[1]
That search is
over. But an irony intercedes. Another search—an abundantly positive search, flourishing with growth
and cavernous in meaning—must now commence and continue through the remaining
years of our lives.
God has us and will not let us
go—how thankful are we!
This aggressive hope-filled love
of Jesus’ runs beyond every wrong, to go on hoping—love never fails. Love is spent with all we
have.
Powered by such grace we find that
love is the only way we can go, and not just any old ‘conditional’ love. With
the flourishing strokes of hope combining to fuel our portions of God-anointed
grace, we’re able to love without thought for return. Even better when there is
no return!
We would have to admit that it is
a miracle—to discharge such a hope-filled love.
It’s beyond credit of our own.
This ability to love can only come from God.
© 2013 S. J. Wickham.
[1] If you have not
found, keep searching! Often, the irony is, by some manner of suffering, the
truth will be found.
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