Love...

Love...

Are you thinking I am on the wrong holiday?  No, I know Valentine's Day has already passed and is not coming up this weekend.  I know, I know...tomorrow is Good Friday and this coming Sunday is Easter.

So, why "Love..."

What do you think Good Friday and Easter are all about!?!  No...not a day off of work and a long weekend (some don't get that luxury, by the way).  Not a time to go buy a new outfit to wear so everybody can see how nice you and your children look.  Not "just another day or weekend" for those of you who do not go to church or do not ascribe to Christianity, or maybe even any religion for that matter.  True...all of the above are often associated with Good Friday and Easter.  I am not bashing any of them, but I am just pointing out that none of them are the real reason for Easter.

So...back to "Love..."

I do love to get a thoughtful gift from my husband, no matter what the occasion (or non-occasion) may be.  Honestly, I even loved it the time he had our son carry a birthday card over to me (in front of my entire family...parents, siblings, etc.) and as I read it, I just had to crack up!  It basically was written as if it was from a young son to his mother, though it was intended to be from my husband to me!!!  Of course, he did not realize that when he picked it up off of the shelf...and his screener (my brother) fell down on his job as well, obviously!  Regardless...it really brought joy to me.  It made me and all of us in the room have a really good laugh!  And, a memory to share here a couple of years later.

But, back to the thoughtful gift, the token of Love...

As I am reading John 17 this week, I am so touched by the love Jesus expresses for us as He prays for us in this entire chapter of John.  Moreso, I have been struck by something I never really thought of before...

Over and over again, He mentions how His then disciples as well as all who would come to believe in Him throughout eternity, all of us were given TO Him by His Father...WE are gifts of Love given from the Father to His Son.  AND...HE is our Father's ultimate Gift of Love to US!!!  He loves us so much that He gave us His Son and the brutal death of His Son on the cross (as is commemorated by Good Friday) as well as His Resurrection (as is commemorated by Easter Sunday).

But back to Me and You, as believers (or soon-to-be believers, for some of you), being gifts TO Him!!!  That's the part I've never really thought much about.  Just think about it...a gift (Me / You) is (are) very special to both the GIVER (God) and the RECIPIENT (Jesus).  The Giver puts great thought and consideration into selecting and often even handmaking the gift (which God did when He created us) and is very much excited to see the joy the gift will bring to the Recipient.  The Recipient, of course, is made to feel very special and loved when receiving such a special gift.  You and I are that gift to Jesus!!!  We bring Him that joy and make Him feel special, as well as God our Father who gave us to His Son and created us for Him!  WOW!!! Does that not just blow your mind!?!  Yes, you are THAT special!  Believe it!  And, of course, like I said before...He (Jesus) is that Gift to us, from our Father who loves us so much He gave us His Son as a Gift/Token of His love for us! 

Now, THAT's Love...

"My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. "Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world. "Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me. I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them." - Jesus (John 17:20-26)