Treasure Day 5 Live Like You’re Loved

Jeremiah 17:7-8
Isaiah 43:1-3
I John 4:7-19

Treasure, Day 5

Have you ever been driving down the road listening to the radio and suddenly the song not only fills your car but also your heart? This reality captured me recently as I drove to work. The early morning sun greeted me and the commuter traffic kept me moving along at a steady, slow pace. I was a captive audience, and in that moment the Lord presented me with both an invitation and challenge through the beautiful lyrics of a Hawk Nelson song, “Live Like You’re Loved.”

The song’s catchy tune quickly seeped into my mind but the words pierced my heart.

“So go ahead and live like you’re loved
It’s okay to act like you’ve been set free
His love has made you more than enough
So go ahead and be who He made you to be…and live like you know you’re valuable
Like you know the One that holds your soul
‘Cause mercy has called you by your name
Don’t be afraid to live in that grace.”

Live like you’re loved. 

Live. Like. You. Are. Loved.   

Do you find a challenge or an invitation in this lyric? Or is it some strange combination of the two, interweaving to create an enticing yet overwhelming experience?

I can succeed at the living part. In order to stay this side of heaven, living is required. However, living like I’m loved sometimes proves to be a challenge.

Why?

There are days I truly don’t know why. Other days, I can quickly point to frustrating circumstances, doubts and unbelief filtering through my mind, or actions I take which scream uncertainty on my part.

So as I crept along with the morning commute that day, Jesus began to sing over me through the words of that song, a Zephaniah 3:17 experience. I sensed Him reminding me that I am loved by Him, regardless of any other love I have encountered in this lifetime.

Some of us may not have a positive relationship with our families and lack a solid understanding of a love dynamic.
Maybe previous friendships have ended with a proverbial knife through the heart.
Maybe we’ve never experienced the healthy love of a spouse.
Maybe we feel unworthy of love, shamed by the weight of our sins.
In a fallen world, among hurting people and broken relationships, living like we are loved is hard.

However,  God is love. 

In the midst of my car encounter with Him, this truth resonated the loudest.

God is love and I am loved by Him.

He has called me by name. (Isaiah 43:1-3)

He gives me strength and power. (Psalm 68:35)

Much like Gideon, He speaks to me about who I am and deals with my doubts. (Judges 6:1-40)

He has good works prepared for me. (Ephesians 2:10)

He is intimately acquainted with the details of my life. (Psalm 139:1-24)

He sees past the blackness of my sins, through the bloodied beams of a wooden cross, to the heart of His beloved child. (Romans 5:8)

He will never leave me nor forsake me. (Deuteronomy 31:8)

The Bible is filled with promises the Lord has made to us. In essence, the Bible is a long love letter to each of us, declaring His love, power, faithfulness, and goodness. Over and over, the Israelites walked away from the Lord, forsaking their first love. Yet His Word is filled with example after example of the Lord’s compassion being poured out upon His people.

I am who the Lord says I am.

You are who the Lord says you are.
And armed with that knowledge, He is inviting us to live like we are loved.

There will be days when we may not feel His love, but we must believe He loves us still. Like the tree in Jeremiah, may we pull the truth of the Lord’s love from His Word. We must choose to live like we are loved, regardless of how we may feel.

Remember, my friend, you are loved. Live to the fullest of this truth.

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