Love Like You’ve Never Been Hurt (Part 3)

“Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.” Colossians 3:13 

There is a sickness in the body of Christ. The church is full of parents estranged from their children. There are parents who have not spoken to their children in years. Some people sit in church every Sunday and won’t answer a phone call from their mom, dad, or sibling. The saddest thing in the world is when we don’t keep our families together. It’s heartbreaking to live in the same town as our children and not even know what’s going on in their lives simply because of an offense that occurred years ago. 

Maybe you have a child who has strayed from God and is not living in a way that makes you proud. You may think you are doing something good by writing them off and cutting them out of your life. But God calls us to have a spirit of love in all circumstances. Love can bring them back faster than condemnation ever could. You should be able to look that rebellious child in the eyes and say, “I will never approve of your lifestyle, but you’re mine. You will always be mine, and nothing you can do will make you not mine. I will always love you.” You can still ask them to go to lunch with you. You can still call them or visit and have a relationship with them.

We want to kick people out of our lives, but God has never done that. The Bible doesn’t instruct us to reject people because they are not living up to our standards. They may not be fulfilling your dreams, but you are not in control. They are God’s project. Your job is to love them and cover them in prayer no matter what. When you love like you’ve never been hurt, love will mess them up. Love will break them down. 

Matthew 6 tells us that it is unforgivable not to forgive. Forgiveness is like money. We all want to get it but never want to give it. We often think forgiving someone denies the severity of their offense. We think forgiving them is excusing their actions. You may think you are holding them prisoner, but you are the only prisoner of unforgiveness. God is not telling you to pretend as if they did nothing wrong. He is just telling you to move on. The Apostle Paul said, “This one thing we do- we press forward…” There comes a moment when you have to say, “Enough is enough. This hurt is stealing my peace and my energy. I am moving forward.”

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