Made Ready

Made Ready

Now about your love for one another we do not need to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love each other. 1 Thessalonians 4:9 NIV

I think it is a true statement that when we became followers of Christ, we became as children. We had to start the work of growing up all over again. The first time we grew up, we did so (for better or worse) under the tutelage of our parents and guardians. But as adopted children of God, we now need to re-learn life by the standards of our new guardian.

When God loves us, He does so in order to teach us His way of practicing love. And likewise, we do not know mercy until we are recipients of God's mercy. We are unable to show true compassion until we have becomes recipients of the Lord's compassion. We will not be willing to forgive others until we recognize our need for the Lord’s forgiveness.

God never makes us aware of His love, compassion and forgiveness for our own benefit. God reveals these things to us so that we can pay them forward to others. Maybe a good prayer is to ask God to show you His love, His wisdom, His compassion and His forgiveness. Once we see how God has blessed us, I think that will create a willingness in us to dispense those things to others.