FALL 2015 OC CHRISTIAN MAGAZINE Fall 2015 OC Christian Free magazine | Page 24

FAITH

Receive First,
Give Second
By Max Lucado
What do you do when you’re low on love? Do you try to conjure it up by the
sheer force of will? As if there is within us a distillery of affection that lacks
only a piece of wood or a hotter fire. We poke it and stoke it with resolve.
What’s our typical strategy for treating a troubled relationship? Try harder.

“M

y spouse needs my forgiveness? I don’t know
how, but I’m going to give it.” “I don’t care how
much it hurts, I’m going to be nice to that bum.”
“I’m supposed to love my neighbor? Okay. By

golly, I will.”
So we try. Teeth clinched. Jaw firm. We’re going to love if it
kills us! And it may do just that.
Could it be we are missing a step? Could it be that the first
step of love is not toward them but toward him? Could it be that
the secret to loving is receiving? You give love by first receiving.
“We love each other as a result of his loving us first” (1 John 4:19 NLT).
Long to be more loving? Begin by accepting your place as a
dearly loved child. “Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved
children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us” (Eph. 5:1-2
NIV, emphasis mine).
Want to learn to forgive? Then consider how you’ve been
forgiven. “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each
other, just as in Christ, God forgave you” (Eph. 4:32 NIV).
Finding it hard to put others first? Think of the way Christ put
you first. “Though he was God, he did not demand and cling to his
rights as God” (Phil. 2:6 NLT).
Need more patience? Drink from the patience of God (2 Pet.
3:9). Is generosity an elusive virtue? Then consider how generous
God has been with you (Rom. 5:8). Having trouble putting up
with ungrateful relatives or cranky neighbors? God puts up with
you when you act the same. “He is kind to the ungrateful and
wicked” (Luke 6:35 NIV).
Can’t we love like this?
Not without God’s help we can’t.
If we haven’t received these things ourselves, how can we giv B