Prodigal: Look at all the styles!
Me: Yes, they are pretty.
Prodigal: So many to choose from.
Me: Which should you choose?
This is from the book Bold Love by Dr. Dan B. Allender and Dr. Tremper Longman III
What in the world is going on in our penchant for honesty and openness? Our day is so full of hypocrisy, pretense, and deception that we crave a sincere relationship with another person. One sad byproduct of this legitimate craving is an undisciplined tendency to let people know when we are hurt or offended. Obviously, there is a place for rebuke and honesty, but not as the primary staple of building or maintaining loving relationships. My friend was assaulted, at least in part, due to misapplication of material that I had taught on “bold love.” It alternately breaks my heart and terrifies me that I might unleash a style of interaction that will harm others.
Bold love is not reckless or cruel. It is not beating up another in the name of sharing or intervention. Bold love is courageously setting aside our personal agenda to move humbly into the world of others with their well-being in view, willing to risk further pain in our souls, in order to be an aroma of life to some and an aroma of death to others. Boldly loving another with the energy of Christ (Colossians 1:8-9) would never have produced the destructive confrontation that was thrust upon my friend.
Love the way the Lord wants us to love is to make sure we have no personal agenda, and we are humble. This is really really tough. Thinking someone owes us something, making sure we look good from all this. Making sure that we win the argument. Making sure we don’t have to give to much. These are all agenda’s the Lord may ask you to humble, and surrender.
James 2:23
And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called God’s friend.
Jennifer Van Allen
www.theprodigalpig.com
www.faithincounseling.org
