Irresistible Love

     When running, there comes a point when the exhausted panting and sweating seems to dissipate and a slight surge of energy carries the runner to the finish line - at least for me. On my three mile run today, about halfway through I was at the place of "I'm dying" in the duration of my run. As I turned myself into a cul-de-sac I noticed the mammoth white trash truck and two men in neon vests carrying on with their daily routine.         Before I approached them, I assessed the situation: there was no sidewalk, and I was too far to just turn around and ignore the court. Like the less than intelligent ditsy person I am, I decided to go behind the truck and pray that it wouldn't run me over. Luckily it didn't, but as I passed one of the trash men was in the narrow space in which I had to run. This man had spent his entire day thus far emptying heavy trash cans with a revolting smell in cold weather and dodging blocks of ice, yet his actions were of total kindness and selflessness. He swung his trashcan to his side, and stepped back, halting the routine for a moment. With a smile, he gestured for me - a teenage middle-class "privileged" girl - to pass in front of him. I smiled, said hello, and ran past.
     For the rest of the run I pondered his generous action. There is no way he wanted to move out of the way for me and slow his already wearisome task, yet for some reason unknown to me, he decided to extend a hand of benevolence and let me pass. This got me thinking: That trash man acted like Jesus. 
      I often contemplate the vastness of God's promises for His children. His love is a never-ending well, and I hardly ever reciprocate in a manner worthy of His holiness. God's love is so tremendous that He sacrificed His only perfect Son to die in our place so we could spend eternity in His holy presence. 

"But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." - Romans 5:8

      God's love is shocking. I think the assumption can be safely made that being abused, spat upon, persecuted, an loathed by His people hardly thrilled Christ. No one is eager for pain. Yet because of the immeasurable love and grace God has for us, Christ became sin who knew no sin (1 Corinthians 5:21). In Matthew 26: 36-46, we can read that Jesus was painfully aware of how difficult His calling was. Yet He prayed that the will of the Father would be done, not His will.
     How often do we pray these words; "God, please _______ if it's your will". How often on a daily basis do we question God's divine plan and decide we know what's best? Too often. Jesus, who had done no wrong in his life, had the temptation to do the same (Hebrews 4:15), yet He realized that God's will was for the best. He willingly let Himself be sacrificed so we could have eternal life.
     For a long time, whenever I thought of God, MY GOD, whose fingers can wrap around the world and who can breathe this earth into existence, who is infinite in our finite lives, and who can hear every word and thought of everyone in the world, my breath was taken away. It still is. This is the same God who sent Jesus to die so we could be with Him. Doesn't that just make you want to scream and jump up and down?! It is awesome. Our God is awesome.
     Whenever I make a meager effort to contemplate God's love, I am overwhelmed by my inadequacy and how I don't deserve one bit of it. There is nothing I can do to deserve God's love. No work or amount of faith will be adequate to thank God for His grace. I can't even begin to try to explain God's mercy - I couldn't even attempt it. Instead, I will leave with a wonderful sermon by Francis Chan entitled "Falling Madly In Love With God", and marvel at the perfection of my Creator.
     I'm so thankful that I saw Jesus through a trash man today.