Like –

Is there a difference between the word like vs. the word love?  I’m sure you’re nodding your head – of course there is!  I think loving someone would be a part of a deeper and committed relationship.  You don’t just call them on the phone or spend time with them out of obligation.  No matter what, we would do our best to support them, even when it’s difficult.  Love requires sacrifice, but a sacrifice that comes with joy.  I recently met a woman at church who has been through some health challenges.  She is so grateful that her husband has been there by her side, nursing her back to health, doing everything that she, for now, cannot do (and with joy).  That is love!  But, like is just as important in our relationships.  My husband and I have a ritual when we say, “I love you.”  We also ask each other, “but do you like me, like me?”  Like, to me, says you just plain enjoy being with that person.  Sure, we definitely love each other, through thick and thin, but the like part solidifies everything for me.   Although we both have our friends and our likes and dislikes, we are at our best when we’re together.   When we think about our relationship with Jesus, do we love Him AND do we like Him?  Wow – that really makes me stop and think!  How about you?  On the reverse side, there is no question that Jesus loves us.  Everything I think a relationship should be, whether it’s love or like, He pours out to you and me.  Jesus is definitely committed to us.  He loves when we spend time together in prayer, conversation and just in quiet.  Most of all, He sacrificed everything for you and me.  Jesus also prays with us, He walks with us and everything He does it’s with total joy.  How lucky are we to have someone by our side every hour of the day, encouraging us, loving us and to acknowledge He even likes us!  He likes us with all our baggage, all our failures, and even when we doubt His love.  So, let’s do a better job, with total joy, this week to do the same for Him!

“You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.”  Jeremiah 29:13