Weekly Overview:

One of the most scandalous truths of the gospel is that our Creator longs to be encountered by his creation. God longs to meet with us. His greatest desire is for relationship with us. I can’t fathom why God in all his holiness and goodness makes himself available to us, but it is the powerful truth of Scripture. God is pursuing each of us with his relentless love, seeking out those who might respond to his open invitation by opening the door of their hearts to him. My prayer is that in response to God’s desire to meet with his people we would be those who say yes to centering our lives around his nearness. May your week be marked by the reality of God’s presence and love.

Scripture:

“No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:37-39

Worship:

Broken Vessels (Amazing Grace) by Hillsong Worship

Devotional:

I’ve spent so much of my life striving to be loved. The overwhelming need to be loved by somebody, anybody, is at the heart of most every decision, thought, perspective, and action I make. We are created with a longing to be loved. God formed us with an insatiable need for love because he desires to satisfy that longing. You see, we no longer have to go through life wondering if we’re loved. Our God doesn’t hide his heart from us. He never holds back his love.

Romans 5:8 says, “But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” God demonstrated his love for us on the cross. But the cross also serves as a reminder that God will, now and forever, continually pour out his love. Not only did he commit a powerful act of love then, but he also makes his love available to us now.

Psalm 26:3 says, “For your steadfast love is before my eyes, and I walk in your faithfulness.” And Psalm 36:5 says, “Your steadfast love, O Lord, extends to the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds.” The love of God is continually available to us. His steadfast love is here, ready to be experienced. God longs to so satisfy our great need for love that we stop seeking it from the world. He longs to so fill us up with his unconditional affections that we would no longer strive to be loved, but simply find rest in him.

Romans 8:37-39 says,

There is nothing we could ever do to separate ourselves from the love of God. As soon as we feel the need to be loved we can always turn our hearts toward our heavenly Father and simply receive a fresh awareness of his powerful, unconditional love. Stop working to be loved. Stop striving for that which is already yours. What are the affections of man in comparison to the love of your Creator? What is the fleeting, fickle praise of man in comparison to the all-consuming, powerful, and truthful love of God? May your life be marked by a peace that comes from resting in the love of your heavenly Father alone.

Guided Prayer:

Extended Reading: 1 John 4