Jesus loves me. You’ve likely heard that song many times, maybe so much that the words have lost some of their meaning. At a recent Grace that Reigns retreat, Bishop Emeritus Gilmore of Dodge City told us how much God loves us on an individual, personal level. He said that God loves you _______ (your name here), so much that He couldn’t imagine a world without you in it. That God would have made the world and everything in it for you and you alone. Jesus would have became man, suffered, and died on the cross if only you would be saved and live with Him in heaven. That’s how much Jesus loves you.
It’s this amazing love that God pours out for us that allows us to be able to love like He does, described in our second reading. Without experiencing God’s love, consistently loving others with patience, kindness, humility, meekness, forgiveness, strength, faithfulness, hope, and perseverance (1 Cor 13: 4-7) is just too much for our human abilities alone. To be able to give supernatural love, we must receive supernatural love: “We love because he first loved us” (1 Jn 4:19). Deep down in our souls, we need to know that God made us (Jer 1:5) and loves us (1 Jn 4:10). We need to feel that we are “fully known” by God (1 Cor 13:12). Isn’t that a good description of feeling really loved—knowing that someone truly understands you? Yes, you are fully known and fully loved. Look at a crucifix for the ultimate proof: “But God proves his love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us” (Rom 5:8). Jesus lived and died for us because He loves us; He would have done it for you alone.
Thank you, Jesus, for loving me so much that you came to die to save me. Help me experience Your love in a deep, meaningful way so I can pour that love out to others.