How Big is the Love of God?

"God's love is so big, almost nobody can explain it," says Jamie, age 8. "It's bigger than 999,999,999 gallons of chocolate milk. No one really knows how big his love is, but all I know is that he loves us no matter what."

We're so used to conditional love that it's difficult even to imagine a God who loves us unconditionally. Human love is often evoked by appealing or beautiful qualities in people. But what about loving people who repulse, despise or even hate us? That's a different kind of love.

"God's love is bigger than people's love, dogs' love and everyone's love," says Catherine, 8.

In writing this column, I've noticed a consistent pattern of children wanting their dogs in heaven. These amazing animals seemed to be equipped with an unconditional-love button for their masters. No matter how many times you come home, your dog is always excited. On a good day, your cat may wake up, meow and go back to sleep.

In all fairness to cat lovers, I have a friend who has learned a faith lesson from her cat. This ball of white fluff knows that she's in a helpless state on her own. Even though this clawless feline has a Persian pedigree, she looks to her owner for everything. We would likewise do well to put off our fluff of imagined self-sufficiency and look to God for our provision.

"Sometimes, I call my sister a bad name. When I get in trouble, God helps me stop crying," says Spencer, age unknown.

Yes, God's love is bigger than the pain of our failure and sin. Emotional pain can drive us either to bitterness and hardness of heart or to healing and restored fellowship with God. The evil one would have us focus on our failure to the exclusion of God's forgiveness. The reality of God's love must become bigger than past failures.

Perhaps you're married to someone who has an elephant memory for your past failures. If so, I recommend a bulldog faith that seizes forgiveness of sin through Jesus' cross and refuses to let go. Determine to live in the light of God's opinion of you as his beloved child instead of the guilt and condemnation of your past failures.

Until God's love affects the way we view ourselves and others, it has minimal impact on the way we live. The Apostle John wrote, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (I John 1:9). Jesus offers salvation from the penalty of sin, the power of sin and the presence of sin.

When Christians confess their sins to God, they experience forgiveness and freedom from the power of sin in their lives. Sin's penalty of being separated from God forever cannot touch those who have trusted the Lord Jesus as Savior. Confession to God allows us to agree with God regarding the sin and to experience God's love afresh as we walk in the light of his will.

If you're in a relationship with elephant memory, do some remembering of your own, says Kasey, 8: "God's love will never end. It's bigger than a hundred trillion, billion elephants! If I compare God's love to anything, God's love would be bigger."830

The same Apostle John wrote: "There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear because fear involves torment" (I John 4:18). When we're filled with God's love, there's no room for fear, hatred, bitterness, envy or all the past failures that torment us. God's love displaces fear and other sins, and it also transforms our outlook on life by neutralizing the guilt of past failures. Allow the bigness of God's love to fill you with the abundant life God desires for you.

Carey Kinsolving is a syndicated columnist, producer, author, speaker and website developer. To see Carey's Kid TV Interviews and more, visit http://www.KidsTalkAboutGod.org/. The Kids Talk About God website contains free, online content for children and families. Print free lessons from the "Kids Color Me Bible" and make your own book. Watch for free the adventures of an 11-year-old girl traveling around the world, visiting missionaries in the Mission Explorers Streaming Video. Print Bible pictures drawn by kids that illustrate Scripture verses. Receive a complimentary, weekly e-mail subscription to our Devotional Bible Lessons. Bible quotations in this column are from the New King James Version.

Copyright 2006 Carey Kinsolving

Nelson Mandela