Tied to a Rope

Have you ever felt like your heart has been tied to a rope and thrown out to sea? Then out of the blue someone comes along and loves you. I don't mean necessarily a romantic love? I mean just overcome with love for someone? It could have been for a grandmother, a teacher, a mentor, a Sunday School teacher. Even a best friend. Through their love you become the very best you can be. THey believ

e in you. You lose yourself. THe focus is not on you. You are just alive, and happy and full. You even go and love other people better. You forgive. You build others up and encourage them. You love being with them. They just make your day. They form your character. You become and want to be more like the things you see in them. THey give you value and worth. Your eyes are on them with adoration. It makes everything you do wonderful. You enjoy even the simplest of things in life. You try new and exciting things. Your problems seem smaller and they seem more important. Because you are loved.
If the love from another person and our love for them can give us this kinda life. Make this much difference in us. How much more is our love for Jesus and His and the Fathers love for us change us. This is just a shadow of the life in CHrist and our union with Him. It is just a taste of the unconditional love of God.
We are Jesus to others. He life lives, His love loves, through us to others. He builds our community. Stretches our hearts to people we have never known before. We reach out instead of turning in. We accept and cherish others instead of analyzing or judging. We build up and encourage. We believe for them when they can't believe. We pray when they can't pray. We hold their arms up. We tell them about Grace and our Savior and His love for them. God uses us to help set the captives free. To bring them into the body. To journey along side them. To let them see joy and peace they have never seen before. We give them life when we give them Jesus. He is life.