LIVE DEEP, LOVE WIDE

Bill Hybels, Becoming a Contagious Christian wrote these words: "Recently, I saw a letter written by a relatively new Christian to the person whose life had influenced hers so greatly. Listen to some of what she wrote:

'You know when we met; I began to discover a new vulnerability, a warmth, and a lack of pretense that impressed me. I saw in you a thriving spirit--no signs of internal stagnation anywhere. I could tell you were a growing person and I liked that. I saw you had strong self-esteem, not based on the fluff of self-help books, but on something a whole lot deeper. I saw that you lived by convictions and priorities and not just by convenience, selfish pleasure, and financial gain. And I had never met anyone like that before. I felt a depth of love and concern as you listened to me and didn’t judge me. You tried to understand me, you sympathized and you celebrated with me, you demonstrated kindness and generosity--and not just to me, but to other people, as well. And you stood for something. You were willing to go against the grain of society and follow what you believed to be true, no matter what people said, and no matter how much it cost you. And for those reasons and a whole host of others, I found myself really wanting what you had. Now that I’ve become a Christian, I wanted to write to tell you I’m grateful beyond words for how you lived out your Christian life in front of me.'"

How many of us can say that we have lived like this? How many of us can this be said of? Perfection is not needed to LOVE perfectly.  It takes the understanding that we have ALL sinned and fallen short so we can therefore grant the grace needed by that classmate, co-worker or neighbor. Patience is not an easy thing to possess or hold to but indeed living deeper than the shallow faith we often hold to.

What would it take to make your life make sense?

For some it’s a near death experience.

For others it’s an actual death of a loved one that will straighten them out

                  For some, its just a life LIVED DEEP, and LOVINGLY WIDE