A few years ago I read a book that described God’s love for us as a love that pursues us. At that time I thought it was a very unique description, but I did not think too much of it. Usually the way we understand God’s love is as a sacrificial love, through Jesus dying on the cross for our sins. A love that pursues us seems to describe romantic love, rather than God’s holy love.
This year, while teaching two classes on “Spiritual Formation”, I assigned my students to do their timeline of life. The purpose of this assignment was to guide them in reflection on their lives and to understand God’s work in their lives. In one class I had over 20 students, meaning I had to read over 20 essays of reflection. But after a dozen or so essays, I was so moved that I could not help shedding tears.
In this group of students, some were from Christian families, having grown up with a good Biblical foundation. Some were from non-Christian families and had never stepped into a church. Some had happy childhoods; others had a lot of worries and troubles, having had to depend on charity. Even though each of them had a different experience in life, there was one thing in common. In every critical moment and turn of life, there was God’s grace and provision. No matter their life stage, the hand and guidance of God never left them. I suddenly understood what that book meant by God’s pursuing love. In fact, in another Methodist term, these are the vivid examples of the prevenient grace.
God uses his tender and patient love to call each one of us, until we willingly surrender to his love. He is like a lover who never gives up, whose love never changes. Now I regard God’s love with great reverence, and dare not make light of it. God never gives up on us, guiding us in every turning point in our lives, leading us back into His arms. Facing such a love that pursues us – how can we ever reject or repay it?