Receiving God’s Love
One of the most widely known attributes of God is His love. Growing up in church, I heard about it constantly, but that didn’t mean I truly understood or embraced it. In fact, from the time I was first exposed to who God was until I began to grasp what His love meant for me was a decade-long process (and I’m still growing and learning).
I remember being in my dad’s apartment, fresh out of high school, wrestling with an addiction to pornography that had started when I was twelve. At that point, I had dated more boys than I can count (behind my parents' backs), struggled with depression and suicidal thoughts, and kept returning to a guy who, frankly, treated me like trash. I felt lost, living the cliché of "searching for love in all the wrong places." Interestingly, I had been saved for the latter half of that time, yet I somehow felt more distant from Jesus than ever.
The shame was overwhelming. Every time I fell into temptation, I would find myself crying, asking God why He would keep a person like me on this earth—a hypocrite and a mess.
Then one night, it happened again, and the same cycle of shame began to repeat itself. I can’t recall every detail of what happened next, but something clicked. I was frustrated and felt like no amount of repentance could ever make me clean. But I decided to read God’s Word, and I realized: God doesn’t see me the way I see myself. He doesn't look at me with disdain or disgust, even when I fall. His love remains pure and unconditional, despite what I have done.
In that moment, His love suddenly became real to me—more than a concept. I felt like I had a glimpse of it when I first gave my life to the Lord, but this moment was different. Then, I made a decision: if God hasn't changed His mind about loving me after all of this, I can love myself enough to break free.
Now I’m not saying that things were just ‘perfect’ after that moment. They weren’t. As I said, the details are fuzzy but, I do remember more instances of falling into temptation. This doesn’t have to be the case for everyone, but it was for me. However, they became fewer and farther between until, finally, the day came when I never turned back. I didn't even "mark" the date; I was simply too wrapped up in God’s presence to care about anything else. It’s probably been decades now, I lost count. Ever since that moment, my life has never been the same. I got serious about purity, growth, and fully focusing on my relationship with Jesus.
As I’ve continued in my walk with the Lord, I’ve reflected on these moments where receiving God’s love was initially a struggle and how when it finally clicked, that marked a significant moment of breakthrough in my life. Like the time I just mentioned surrounding addiction as a young girl. Or the time when I was struggling with feeling rejection from childhood and other relationship wounds. Or the time when my second-born daughter was stillborn and I thought it would be the end of me because of the unbearable pain and anger I felt. In all of those moments (as painful as they were), I can distinctly remember pausing and allowing the Father to embrace me, comforting me like a warm blanket on a frigid day. It was the difference between life and death. That’s how powerful His love is.
For many, receiving God's love feels difficult for many reasons, like guilt, shame, or a "performance-based" upbringing. But God doesn't just love freely; He makes His love easy to receive. It is a strategy of the enemy to convince us that God’s love actually does have conditions and prerequisites when it doesn’t. Why? Because if you struggle to receive something God is giving freely, you’ll instead spend so much time worried about how to earn it that you miss out on it and everything else God desires for you—like experiencing freedom and healing, walking in your identity, fulfilling your God-given destiny, and so much more. It’s like someone telling you they’re giving you a free car, no strings attached and all you have to do is come and get it, but you’ve been convinced that you need to work for a few months to still pay for it. Hello? It’s free!
If you don't believe this, you'll remain trapped in cycles of inadequacy. That alone will hinder you from becoming more like Him because you’ll never get to know Him.
You’ve likely heard or read John 3:16, but if by chance you haven’t, here’s what it says:
16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
Most people know this verse, and can even say it by memory. But typically it stops there. This is what the 2 verses right after say:
17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. 18 He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
It was God’s love for the world that compelled Him to make the greatest sacrifice and overcome the grave for us all. He sent Jesus so that we would be saved, not condemned, which the dictionary defines as “sentenced to a particular punishment, especially death.” The key for us is that we must believe in His Son, as it says in Romans 10:9:
“If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”
God’s love is a gift, not something He’s dangling above you, just out of reach. Otherwise, why would He make the greatest sacrifice with no guarantee that you’d love Him or even care to have anything to do with Him in return. That would make no sense. What kind of outrageous love is this?
Just look at the Parable of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32). The son wasted everything and returned home, hoping to be a servant since he felt no longer worthy to be a son. But the father ran to him, embracing and restoring him. How much greater is our Father in heaven? He is ready to celebrate us when we return, even if we feel like we’ve hit beyond rock bottom, damaged goods that couldn’t possibly be restored. I tear up even as I write this. God’s love is just mind-blowing.
There is no complex step-by-step process to this. Counseling and deliverance are wonderful and needed, but ultimately, it’s about choosing to believe God for who He says He is—not what you feel, not how someone else tells you you should perform, not your past, and certainly not what the enemy whispers in your ear. You can facilitate this by:
Filling your life with His Word (Reading the Bible).
Spending time in worship and prayer.
Connecting to a church community of believers that are deeply in love with God and constantly pursuing relationship with Him.
Letting go of the fear of being "not good enough."
None of these things earn His love; they simply help you abide in His presence so that receiving His love becomes natural.
Journal Prompt: Think about a time you felt distant from God. Sit quietly (perhaps with instrumental worship music) and ask Him to show you how He was there for you in that moment. I guarantee He was there, waiting to embrace you His love and lead you through that challenge. Get vulnerable with Him and allow Him to show you.
Prayer
(Read this out loud)
Father, thank you for who You are and for the love that you so freely pour out for all of us. Thank you for the sacrifice that you made by sending your Son to die for me and the whole world, even when none of us was deserving of it. Thank you that the mistakes that I’ve made and sins that I’ve committed won’t ever deter You from loving me and pursuing me. Your love knows no bounds. Thank you, God, that I am always safe in Your presence. I have struggled to receive Your love and I repent now Lord for not believing or trusting You. I choose to believe that Your love for me is unconditional and freely available to me. I know that You are eagerly waiting to forgive me and embrace me and heal me from the inside out. Thank you that you are my God and my Father who restores eagerly, just as the father did with the prodigal son. I love you, Jesus, and I give you my whole heart. In Jesus’ name, amen.
If you’ve never given your life to Christ, or maybe you’ve fallen away and want to come back to Him, I have a salvation prayer resource that you can pray and read through 🫶🏾. Don’t hesitate to reach out to me as well, I’d love to pray with you or help in anyway I can!
