I love this version of Romans 12:9-10 so much! I spent so much of my time growing up in the church hiding. I didn’t know it, and no one told me to do that, but I thought I needed to be perfect and pulled together to follow Jesus, and that’s the exact opposite of what it means. Following Jesus for me has looked like falling on my face, asking for help and mercy even when I didn’t deserve it, and encountering the tenderness of God in that vulnerable and broken place over and over again. It’s also looked like learning to listen and to love others.
Love from the center. Don’t fake it. Run from evil. Hold on to what is good. Be good friends who love deeply, and practice playing second fiddle. These are all mantras I want to live into, and I’m so grateful for the way Jesus lived this out in front of us. At your center, you are dearly loved and held, even through your worst moments, so we can love from a place that is fully accepted. What would that look like?! What would it look like if we operated from a place where we knew that we already belonged, we didn’t have to hustle for our worth? I want to live like that…nothing to prove & all the love to give away. God, help me love from the center, and thank You for being a safe place for me to fall apart and be held together.