Loved

LOVED

a prayer to open

Here I am, Lord. Remind me who I am.

I am loved. I am known. I belong to you.

All of us used to live that way, following the passionate desires and inclinations of our sinful nature. By our very nature we were subject to God’s anger, just like everyone else.

But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!)

“But God . . .” This phrase appears dozens of times throughout the Bible. “You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good,” Joseph told his brothers who had sold him into slavery (Genesis 50:20).^a “My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak, but God remains the strength of my heart; he is mine forever,” the psalmist reminded himself (Psalm 73:26).^b “With the help of lawless Gentiles, you nailed him to a cross and killed him. But God released him from the horrors of death and raised him back to life, for death could not keep him in its grip,” Peter preached in his first sermon (Acts 2:23-24).^c God has always acted and is always acting in contrast to death and darkness. He brings goodness, strength, life, and love. We can be sure that where we see darkness, death, and despair, the phrase “But God . . .” can be used. Darkness seems to settle over us, but God brings light. Death seems to overcome us, but God brings life. Despair seems to overtake us, but God brings hope. We are subject to our worldly desires and the pull of our sinful natures, leading us toward death. But God, who is love, brings us out of death and into life because he loves us so richly and deeply.

• Read Paul’s words again, but this time replace the plural pronouns (the us and we) with personal pronouns (I and me). What stirs in you when you read the passage this way? Where do you feel resistance? Relief? Uncertainty?
• Reflect on a “But God . . .” experience you have had. What happened? How did you feel? What did God do? How did you experience the truth of being loved by him?
• Take a moment to quiet yourself in God’s loving presence. Ask him to open your eyes and heart to the ways he wants you to live more fully into the truth that you are loved fully and unendingly by the Creator of all things, the God of the universe. What did he bring to mind?

Father, how you love us! How you love me! Your love and your mercy are beyond my comprehension. I don’t have the words to express my gratitude for your saving grace, but I want my life to be my thanks. Your love, expressed by your mercy and grace, has changed everything—everything in the world, everything in my life. What could I do but give you all that I am in return! I give you my heart, my eyes, my hands, my words, my thoughts, and my desires. Receive them, Lord, and use them for your glory and purposes. Amen.