Love Covers A Multitude

Imagine from http://www.healthrising.org/broken-up-woman/

"Lord I want to love as you do."    Just shy of thirty years ago ,sitting on the back pew alone in church, I whispered those words to my daddy God. I had been watching the doors open as others came in for Sunday night service and through my people watching silence, I began to notice the slumped shoulders as though the world was sitting on top of them, the slow moving steps unsure were to sit or if they should even stay, the plastic smiles hiding the hurt buried deep within, and the lonely eyes that scanned the sanctuary in hopes someone would welcome them in.  I looked down, in the hopes no one noticed my eyes gazing through out the church, at my shaking clasped hands and realized I am no different.  I, too felt the world on my shoulders that night, my feet were uncertain where to go thus I made the choice to sit on the very last pew, my plastic smile was hiding much brokenness, and my eyes painted a deep pool of loneliness.

I can, to this day, remember closing my eyes and feeling all the brokenness that had walked through the doors as well as my own and still hear the words I softly whispered to my daddy God.

My heart felt desire has not changed over the course of thirty years. If anything it has increased and my heart has become more sensitive for the broken and the weary; the ones the world has cast aside as useless and unlovable. I find myself looking at others in the streets, coffee shops, shopping malls or even in rush hour traffic wondering if they are loved. Sometimes on a rare moment I am able to make eye contact, I can see past the one looking back at me and hear their broken pieces echoing into a world that has no compassion. It is then my hands once again clasp together and my heart gently asks my daddy God to shower them with more love than they can contain. One would be amazed at the effect a simply  "hello", "How are you?", or even a smile that lets them know they are worthy to be noticed.  A person's brokenness does not define their worth, the love of God has already declared they are loved, a love that is to be extended to all.

There are more reasons than I can name why a person would be living in a broken and weary state. The reasons could be described as symptoms of living a life without knowing the true love of our daddy God. Some could be considered side effects that have lingered from a lack of healing a hurt sick heart. Maybe it is the fear of rejection and a voice of judgment claiming no one has ever fallen in life as this.   My prayer was answered the night I sat alone on that back pew. He changed my heart and give me eyes to see, no matter the reason, I am to love the broken. After all love covers a multitude.

1 Peter 4:8 (NIV)
Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.

Forever His Daughter,

Stacey