Lover of All

 But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your heavenly Father, for he makes his sun rise on the bad and the good, and causes rain to fall on the just and the unjust.

Matthew 5:  43-45

It is not easy to love those who hate us.  It goes against the grain of reason.  The burning desire is to hit back with equal or stronger force.  Yet, this is not what Jesus taught.  Turn the other cheek, do good to those who hate us, and love even our enemies.  That is what He modeled for us to follow.

What kind of love is this that transforms even the bitter poison of hate into the sweetest potion called redemption?  Did He not die in the most inhumane way crucified amongst thieves, vilified and mocked until His dying breath?

Oh God, your love is a bottomless ocean and your mercy reaches to the skies.  Help me to follow your example with conviction and purpose not through any of my puny efforts but only through your grace.