Daily Reading: Love

Today I will respond to others with love. I am created as an expression and object of God’s love which He demonstrated for me on the cross. And He continues to demonstrate His love to me every moment of every day. He empowers me with His Spirit; and the natural expression of His Spirit living in me is love. In the same way He expresses His love to me, He wants me to express love to others. I love because He first loved me. I love Him, myself and others. And I am most like Him when I express love to others. Today I will respond to others with love.

Love begins and ends with God, it is His very nature. Love cannot be earned, it is a gift. There is nothing I can do to make God stop loving me; and there is nothing I can do to make Him love me more than He does this very moment. He loves me completely. God’s love is unconditional and sacrificial, thus the cross of Jesus: “God so loved the world that He gave…” The same unconditional, sacrificial love God has for me is flowing through me to others today. Regardless of how others treat me, I will express only love toward them. Today I will respond to others with love.

God’s love is immeasurable and beyond my comprehension. Yet I am completely rooted and grounded in His love, and it has taken hold of every area of my life. Because of this, I choose to love God with all my heart, soul and mind. And I choose to love others as I love myself. Love is not a feeling that fluctuates with the passion of a moment. Love is a decision and a choice to do what’s best for others. I can and will choose with my will, by the power of the Holy Spirit living in me and empowering me, to love. Today I will respond to others with love.

I can only love others as I love myself. That is to see myself as God sees me: His masterpiece, His prized possession, His child. My self-worth comes from His love for me and my Heavenly Father’s acceptance of me. I do not need to seek the approval of others or allow their thoughts of me to sway my esteem, for I am fully and completely loved and approved of by my Father. Because I am secure in His love for me I can live in the choice and command to love others as I love myself. Today I will respond to others with love.