May the Lord direct your hearts to the love of God and to the steadfastness of Christ. (2 Thessalonians 3:5 ESV)
The brokenness and hardships inherent in this life can make the love of God feel distant, if not nonexistent. We need help seeing with our hearts what our eyes cannot perceive. God’s love is relentlessly present and always for us. His love does not waver and, unlike our hearts, is not prone to fickleness. His love toward us does not ebb and flow based on the quality of our behavior but rather endlessly draws near and surrounds us.
I can think of no more important truth to dwell on than God’s love for His children. If His love is ours, it changes everything. We hold the affection of the One who made everything and conquered death—the One who spun the galaxies into being and spoke each piece of creation into its proper place. This God loves us. Not in some distant or detached sort of way, but He loves us by name for He made us.
Even as we are directed to set our hearts on God’s love, there is more we are counseled to do. This second counsel hinges on a hard but needful truth: God’s love does not save us from hardship but provides the means by which we can persevere. We direct our hearts to the love of God, and in so doing, we see the Son of God who so loved the Father and so loved us. He endured all manner of evil and pain so we might know the depths of God's love. He showed us how love and steadfastness work together to birth beauty from brokenness and shame.
The love of God is our anchor; however, this storm-tossed world will require steadfastness to keep our feet securely set upon God’s love for us. As we shepherd our clients into meditating on the love of God, we must also prepare them for the steadfastness that hardship requires. God loves us and will walk with us through every difficulty. Yet, we will often be brought to the end of ourselves so that we might see the endless love and provision of our God. May we remain steadfast in Him and patiently wait until the day His love redeems all things.
