“All I have is just one life
I'll lay it down a million times
For You deserve it
You are worth it
No cost too great a sacrifice
Just like You did, I give my life
For You deserve it
You are worth it" *
My friend attended a Mennonite funeral service for a good friend of his who worked on his homes and was a good friend to his dad and spoke highly of him.
One thing he did mention is at the viewing according to Mennonite custom all the men and women were dressed similarly. My friend was sitting among them. He commented they looked all the same - the Mennonite people looked all the same.
As we sat longer, he communicated to me so many beautiful characteristics of the person who passed away, his family legacy, and also how he showed kindness to his father and his father appreciated this man.
He got me thinking how God created all people, but he looks to us as unique individuals with qualities that set each apart. He doesn’t see us all the same, though outward characteristics may be similar.
We might generalize that people are the same in many ways, But God sees “us”.
God created our identity and sees us individually, loves us for who we are, and has a unique plan for each person. And he does this through greatest love.
When I think of my own life, my identity is not my father's or his addictions or his good and not so good qualities.
I also thought of this, hearing someone speaking about his mental health, and how his mental health is not his identity, as well as what he does for his living. And the mountain top experiences are good analogy for the good times but He now feels that in someways as we go through life, we never reach the mountaintop, and we should always pursue love and goodness along with our story that may include mental health, or struggles that we’ve gone through, and gotten to the other side.
There is no shame in us because now we help others through our unique stories in Salvation.
My identity is something that endures all things.
My purpose is an enduring purpose because of God’s love for me.
“Everything else fades away, riches, fame, beauty, etc. but Love, Love Endures Forever. It is the one thing I can give to everyone I meet, pass on to my children, and build an Enduring Legacy on.” (Love Abides)
“But think about this: while we were wasting our lives in sin, God revealed His powerful love to us in a tangible display—the Anointed One died for us.”
Romans 5.:8 VOICE
“If I had the gift of being able to speak in other languages without learning them and could speak in every language there is in all of heaven and earth, but didn’t love others, I would only be making noise. If I had the gift of prophecy and knew all about what is going to happen in the future, knew everything about everything, but didn’t love others, what good would it do? Even if I had the gift of faith so that I could speak to a mountain and make it move, I would still be worth nothing at all without love. If I gave everything I have to poor people, and if I were burned alive for preaching the Gospel but didn’t love others, it would be of no value whatever.”
1 Corinthians 13:1-3 TLB
“For now, we can only see a dim and blurry picture of things, as when we stare into polished metal. I realize that everything I know is only part of the big picture. But one day, when Jesus arrives, we will see clearly, face-to-face. In that day, I will fully know just as I have been wholly known by God. But now faith, hope, and love remain; these three virtues must characterize our lives. The greatest of these is love.”
1 Corinthians 13: 12-13 VOICE
* A Million Times - (Gateway Worship)
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