The Importance of Being There
I have much to write to you, but I do not want to use paper and ink. Instead, I hope to visit you and talk with you face to face, so that our joy may be complete.—2 John 1:12 (NIV)
Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.—JOHN 15:13 KJV
God-breathed love is sacrificial. It continues to give even under the most difficult of circumstances, never keeping track of the cost. As indicated in today’s scripture, the ultimate expression of love is one’s willingness to lay down his or her life for another.
We wonder if such love is really possible—and if we have it in ourselves to love so sacrificially. Does this scripture refer only to literal death, or is there a deeper message?
Sacrifice, by its very definition, is the ability to place another’s needs before your own—to continue pouring out, even when you’re tapped out. Every instance you give of your time, energy, or resources to care for a loved one in need, you demonstrate your willingness to lay down your life. You’re expressing the heart of God.
Your ability to continue giving day in and day out pleases the heart of your heavenly Father, who perfectly understands the principle of “laying down” one’s life. After all, that’s what He did for us at Calvary.
Dear Lord, please create a caregiver’s heart within me—a heart ready to give sacrificially no matter the cost. When I feel I’m “given out,” remind me of Your great sacrifice on the cross for me.
I have much to write to you, but I do not want to use paper and ink. Instead, I hope to visit you and talk with you face to face, so that our joy may be complete.—2 John 1:12 (NIV)
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.—2 Corinthians 1:3–4 (NIV)
The one who gets wisdom loves life; the one who cherishes understanding will soon prosper.—Proverbs 19:8 (NIV)