Handful of Heartbreak

Have you ever given your all to someone only to be passed by? You know, you give and give and give only to get back empty handfuls of heartbreak and rejection. Someone who you give the benefit of the doubt to even though all you hear says they aren't true to who you've believed them to be only to be made to feel stupid for standing up for them in the first place? Someone you've been caring about, shown kindness and love to only to receive disrespect, unthoughtfulness and hurt in return? How can people be like that? Why must we continue to love the ones that don't reciprocate? I've been thinking about this a lot today... Why, how? 

Moreover, have I been this way to Jesus? Have I passed Him by in my busyness? Have I taken far more than anyone would deserve and broken His heart through rejecting to show His love through giving to others? Have I been true to who He says I am or have I shrunken back into the shadows of less than I'm meant to be? Have I made Him regret standing for me? Have I disrespected the sacrifice of the Cross just because I've not been mindful of the hurt all around me? Have I hurt Him or reciprocated His love and passed it on? Have you?

The truth is, we have all hurt him, been unloving toward Him, thoughtless of Him, disrespectful, been less than we are capable of... Each one of us has taken far more than we deserve, none of us have given enough... We've all broken pieces of His heart, we've all stepped over Him in walking our own paths. And you know what? It doesn't matter. No, it's not right or good or acceptable but it can never dampen His love for us. He knew all along we would fail and purposely shut doors in His face and still he chose to die for us.  He chose to give His all, to give everything, to extend benefit of doubt, to stand up for us, to continue to care for us.  He chose to be kind toward us, and to show us love through complete sacrifice of self. How can He be like that? How can He continue to show love to us without reciprocation? How can he be mindful of us? And that's where it ends... I don't know... I only know he does, even though we've brought Him pain beyond measure he continues to come back with love... 

We can never be worthy, we can never make up for all we've done wrong, we can never give enough for Him, we can never measure up to His sacrifice.... But that's not what He is asking for... He's asking the same question He always has "will you follow me today?" There are no prerequisites, no qualifications and no caveat, only a call. Consider His sacrifice, it's Easter weekend, give Him just some thoughtful time, think of the Cross, the price He paid for your love, and the victory he ensured through the resurrection... What will you give now?