The Small, Specific Ways He Loves Us

Once, when my daughter was in Vacation Bible School, she came home sad and despondent. I asked her what had happened, it was highly unusual for a girl who finds adventure and fun in everything to be down. She said that they sang a song that made her mad. What in the world was going on in Vacation Bible School, I wondered.

She said, “We sang ‘Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so’ and I got so mad because I can’t read yet, so I don’t know that Jesus loves me!”

Even if we can read, how do we know? How do we truly know God loves us?

There are passages in the Bible that remind us of his love and care for us. Psalm 139 is a great one! Here is just a taste from verses 16 and 17: “You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed” (NLT).

Or this passage from the first of John’s letters: “God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. This is real love – not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins” (1 John 4:9-10 NLT).

But what about in the here and now? What about today? How can I know that God loves me?

God is working and speaking this very day. God is loving you and caring for you in a myriad of ways. If we open our hearts and our eyes, we will see how he loves us often and well.

Let me caution you, though; God’s love is rarely found in grand gestures. I have not won the lottery nor the Super Bowl, yet I know that God loves me.

Instead, God’s love is most often demonstrated in ways that are tender, small, and specific.

Let me give you an example. I don’t drink pop often, but when I do, I like a specific brand and flavor. Not many stores in our area stock it. When I am craving a pop, and I find my favorite kind? Thank you, God, for showing me that small act of love.

Maybe a beautiful notebook is on the clearance rack. Or I find the perfect gift for a friend. Thank you, God, for that small act of love.

Perhaps it’s an unexpected phone call from a loved one, a recipe that turned out well, or a job I dreaded wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be. Thank you, God, for that small act of love.

Jesus tells the disciples (and us) about God’s loving care: “What is the price of two sparrows—one copper coin? But not a single sparrow can fall to the ground without your Father knowing it. And the very hairs on your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are more valuable to God than a whole flock of sparrows” (Matt. 10:29-31 NLT).

God knows exactly what you love and what will speak love to you. Keep your eyes open for small but tender ways God shows you he loves you.

A flower in your favorite color blooming on your walk about the neighborhood.

The vehicle ahead of you pays for your coffee order.

A cancelled appointment gives you time to read or rest.

Your favorite cow has a heifer (girl) calf and that means her legacy will continue on in your cow herd. (OK, so that last one was just for me. But that is how specifically God loves me. He knows that that grey calf is a treasure to me, that she is her mother’s best legacy, and that she will make me smile for the next fifteen years.) Thank you, God, for that small act of love.

Keep your eyes open, friends. God is loving you daily in small but very specific ways. Just you. He is writing his love for you into each moment of your life. Those small acts of love will mean nothing to others, but they are God’s love note just to you.

Annie Carlson is rooted like a turnip to the plains of North Dakota where she raises great food, large numbers of farm animals, and three free-range kids with her husband. You can find her with either a book or knitting needles in her hands as she dreams up her next adventure.

Photograph © Hasnat Shahriar Shanto, used with permission