Elemental: S2 - Day 30

1 John 4:8  “God is Love.”

I’m not a huge puzzle guy, but there is one thing  I have learned about putting them together. The picture on the box is critical. I can’t fathom  the evil required to wrap that rectangle with  a misleading photo just to toy with puzzle  enthusiasts. That would be messed up.
 
On the rare occasion I put a puzzle together,  the box stands propped at the head of the  table, the picture fully visible. Parts are strewn  around, categorized by edge pieces, sorted by  color, or snapped together in obvious groupings.  Pieces will be handled one by one, and regularly my eyes will bounce back and forth to the  picture on the box for reference.

So it goes rebuilding our portrait of God and  life with Him. There is a guiding picture. And as we consider a belief to include in the puzzle, we  hold each piece, eyes darting back to the photo for clarification. Never should our collection of  beliefs alter the picture on the box. If they do, we’ve got it wrong. That picture? God is love.  

Allow it to sink deeply into your heart.  See the Creator in Genesis desperate for our companionship, the Lamb of Revelation bent  on rescuing us from disaster, and every verse  of scripture in between calling out God’s love.  Every spring flower, the smell of a newborn  baby, coffee at the kitchen table with a good  friend, every good thing is a gift from a God who  loves us. (James 1:17).  

And then there’s Jesus. John 3:16 says  Christ’s arrival on earth is God’s proof of love.  He holds nothing back from us. He gives His very  best to us. And while Christ’s life on this planet  serves as a sacrifice for our sins and His method  of salvation, never miss that it is also God’s love  song to you and me.
 
No wonder Paul writes: For I am convinced that neither death nor  life, neither angels nor demons, neither the  present nor the future, nor any powers,  neither height nor depth, nor anything else in  all creation, will be able to separate us from  the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our  Lord. (Romans 8:38-39)
 
So live in full appreciation of the picture  of how the puzzle ends up. Love is the roofline  tying together the walls of our beliefs. It is  elemental. Any piece that can’t snap into that  concept should be discarded.

1. What is a place that is particularly  beautiful to you? Why?
2. What is something or someone that  demonstrates the love of God to you? 3. What is a time when you felt the love  of God profoundly? Why do you think  that was?