A Love That Is Bigger....

She said it out of the blue and it totally caught me off guard. However, one of the things I continue to learn is that when things appear to have been said out of the blue, they are often said out of the heart. We may think it is random but there can be great intent, meaning, and even power behind it.

I was helping Annlyn get ready for bed the other night. The day had been a good day. The girls told us all about their time at daycare, their friends, what they had for lunch, and how much they enjoyed the green peas at supper. After giving baths, I was helping Annlyn put her pajamas on and she looked me square in the eyes and said, “The world is bigger than our house, right, dad?”

Again, I tell you, it caught me off guard. I was not sure I heard her right so I replied, “What was that, honey? I’m sorry, I don’t think I understood what you said.” And she said it again, “The world is bigger than our house, right, dad?” Turns out I heard her words right but did I hear her. I responded, “Yes, sweetie. The world is much bigger than our house.” She put on her pajamas and ran off to play with Eva for a few more minutes before bed.

As she bee-bopped down the hallway, I began thinking about her question. I began to wonder where it came from and why she said it. I began to ask questions of myself and of God. Something about it stuck with me that night and the next day, and the next day, and even today. “The world is bigger than our house, right, dad?”

To Annlyn, her whole world is in our house. Her family. Her toys. Her clothes. Her dog. Nearly every physical item that is precious to her and her dearest relationships dwell within the four walls of our house. But as I thought about what she asked me that night, I have come to realize what she was saying – though she may not, in her five-year-old mind have realized it. She was saying that there is much more to the world than what I can put into these four walls. There is more to the world than me and my stuff. There are times in life when we need to hear this – and from the lips of a child, no less. The world is much bigger than me, my stuff and the things that are important to me.

As I have thought through what it was Annlyn was really saying that night, I have come to think about love. Love sees beyond the four walls of our own lives into the bigger, broader, and brighter world of humanity. Love keeps our eyes focused on the God who sees all, knows all, and is working to redeem all through the love expressed in Christ Jesus.

During the month of February, our focus is typically on love. Cards fill the stores where balloons reach high enough for everyone to see. Balloons that are shaped like hearts that are complete with an arrow from cupid through them. There are chocolates, stuffed animals, and jewelry that all represent gifts of love.

Love is for sale while the deeper questions that surround love still linger around unanswered. These deeper questions about the foundation of love, the purpose of love, and the living of love are where the heart of the Christian believer should keep us grounded in our understandings of love. It is Annlyn’s question the other night that has had me thinking about these questions and pondering them in my own life.

When we think about the foundation and purpose of love, it seems the answer is very straightforward. Love sees the world as being bigger than our house. Love sees beyond ourselves, our stuff, our story, our belongings, and the things that are important to us. Love sees beyond who we are and what we are doing and where we are going. Love is not love unless it is grounded in the reality that there is a whole other world other than ourselves. Love is not love unless it is unhindered, unleashed, and undivided.

Love does not have an agenda. Love does not seek a reward. Love is not about reciprocity. If love were about those things, then it would be shrunk back to the boundaries of our own lives. But love is beyond all of that. Love is much, much more. Love is much, much deeper. Because love comes from God.

The bible is chock-full of passages that describe the love of God. How “God demonstrated His own love for us that while we were sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). How God’s love is “wider, deeper, higher, and longer than we could ever imagine” (Ephesians 3:18). How God “will create calm with His love; He will rejoice over you with singing” (Zephaniah 3:17). How “God has remembered His loyal love and faithfulness to the house of Israel; every corner of the earth has seen our God’s salvation” (Psalm 98:3). How “God so loved the world that He gave His only son that whoever would believe in him would not die but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).

Each one of these passages – and the countless others like them – the realization is that love is always beyond itself. Love gives. Love restores. Love is always about something bigger than our own world. When we seek to walk in the light of the love of God, we are opening ourselves, the very depths of our soul and being, to see beyond who we are, where we are headed, and what we possess. Thus, love pushes us to see things from the perspective of God.

Since that night when Annlyn’s statement opened my eyes, things have seemed different for me and for her. I have been looking up and seeing much more going on. Annlyn – though she likely does not realize it – has seen more as well. The morning after she said what she said, I was walking into the daycare to drop off all the kids. Under one arm was Caulder in his carrier and in the other hand was his bag with bottles, clothes, and what he needed for the day. In front of me were Annlyn and Eva each holding their coats as they skipped down the hallway. Annlyn looked back at me, noticing I was carrying several things and said, “Dad, would you like for me to carry Caulder’s bag?” I said, “Yes, Annlyn. That would be great! Thanks, sweetheart.”

When our lives are grounded, rooted, established, and built on the love of God, we see so much more. We see things we have never seen before. The eyes of our hearts are pulled upward to see a landscape of life where God is at work. Then, we turn our eyes heavenward, and pray with a smile, “The world is bigger than our house, right, dad?”

Love….

-Andrew