Thinking Out Loud, Volume CCCXCIII

There's just something about me that my wife loves. I mean...how could she NOT love me after all I do for her?  Well, okay, maybe I don't do THAT much, but I do a few things for her. I wonder if that's why she loves me. I sure hope that's not the reason. Come to think of it, I have two kids who love me too, but I do a few things for them as well. I wonder if they love me because of what I do for them.  I've done a lot of good things for all of them, but I have to tell you, I really don't think that's why they love me. You see, if they love me because of what I do for them, it's not me that they actually love...it's themselves, and they don't love me, they just love what I do. If they loved me simply because of the benefits, I would constantly be in competition with someone else who might can provide more for them than I can.  No, that's not why they love me. Their love for me is unconditional. It's a Godly kind of love.  Let me explain. There's something about me that God loves also. Is it because of how good I am?  Well, let me tell you what He said about that.  He said in His sight, my righteousness is like filthy rags. (Oh, and He said the same thing about you too.)   It's impossible for me to be good enough to earn His love, yet He loves me anyway.  Why? I'm certainly not anyone special, but, just as my family, He loves me for who I am. Even when I try my best to be as good as possible, I don't get any stars, because I'm just doing what I'm supposed to do anyway. I don't get extra credit for simply doing my duty. I'm friends with a couple who went to China to adopt a baby girl. She was just a baby, so there was nothing she could do for them, yet from the first day, they loved her enough to bring her into their home and make her an equal heir with their other "biological" children.  There's just something about love that can't be earned, no matter how much you do or how hard you try. My realtor may bend over backwards and perform some praiseworthy deeds to put me in the home of my dreams, but when it's all said and done, he's still just my realtor, and he doesn't get a room in my new home. I may appreciate everything he did, but his hard work can't buy my love. Love just happens, then love begets love. My wife and I started loving each other at the same time, and each of our loves was made stronger based on the love from each other. Then she and I began loving each of our kids while they were still in the womb, and as a result, their love for us is unbreakable. God loved me BEFORE I was in my mother's womb....the perfect example of love without condition. If there are conditions, it isn't love. Love can't be bought, and if you try, you're wasting your time and resources. If you want to know what love really is, you should get to know God, because, according to the first memory verse I ever had to learn, "God is love." Preston