I’m giving you a new commandment: Love each other in the same way that I have loved you. Everyone will know that you are my disciples because of your love for each other.
John 13:34–35
Loving isn’t just a suggestion; it’s the command on which all other commands are based. As a believer, you have nothing without love—but that doesn’t have anything to do with the love you are getting; it’s all about the love you are giving. It is super duper important that you love other believers, and a lot of times that means giving in, losing, and turning the other cheek. If you are unwilling to do those things, you are unwilling to love. Love is selfless; it chooses to give no matter what it gets in return. When Christians love only people who love them, they don’t prove to anyone anything about who God is. They only prove their hypocrisy. It doesn’t make sense to accept the love of God, who doesn’t owe us anything and who we turn away from daily, and then refuse to love others when they hurt or reject us. Christian love is a sign to the world that God is greater than our needs and feelings and a sign of his great power in our lives.
If your love defines you, then who are you? Do you look like the God who loves you or like the world that surrounds you? When you understand the power of love and God’s command to love, then you will truly be set free from the chains of rejection, fear, and loneliness. Then you will be able to see everything in the light of love, and out of that will come blessings for you and for those you love.
Take heart—love never fails. It might be rejected and it might give you pain, but that doesn’t make it less valuable or rewarding to your soul. The God Girl will be known by her love. And the love that she offers will impact the hearts of not only those who receive it but also the girl who gives it.