I AmSample

Who is easiest for you to love? Someone who is just like you, right? Someone who thinks like you, enjoys the same movies and music, and who laughs at the same jokes. What about the person who gets on your nerves or whose personality couldn’t be more opposite from yours? That's when genuine love for others is put to the test.

Today’s passage says God is love and that we are loved first by God. Because of Jesus’ life and sacrifice, our sin and brokenness is made whole because of God’s love for us. Now, that doesn’t mean God is okay with the wrong things we do — quite the opposite. Jesus gives us an example of what it looks like to make things right within ourselves and with those around us.

God calls us to love one another, and the love that we show is evidence of God in us. That means we are called to love not only those who are easy to love, but those who are difficult to love — the ones we disagree with, the ones that are really annoying, and even the ones that hurt us. Love does not mean overlooking what's wrong, but instead, being able to recognize unhealthy situations. It means seeing another person as one created and loved by God. God loved us first, so let’s share God’s love with others.