“And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.” Romans 5:5
I recently began a new job in an industry where I have never worked before. I spent the first few weeks completely overwhelmed! I don’t remember ever feeling quite this overwhelmed when starting something new. Each day I struggled to grasp all the new concepts that were coming my way. Just when I understood one, five more would be presented. I went home each evening feeling as if I had been drinking from a fire hose. I’m sure there were many times when someone spoke to me and I responded with a blank stare. Here’s the thing about being overwhelmed: when you’re in that state you can’t really think about anything else. Your brain continues to ruminate on the issue and you try to see it from every conceivable angle until it makes sense to you. Even when you’re doing something else, it’s still there. Part of your brain is always on that topic. That’s what makes it so overwhelming.
Recently in church, we sang about the overwhelming love of God. I’ve sung that song many times but this time it caught me up short and caused me to try to define what it means to be overwhelmed. My recent experience with it was not a pleasant one so I would hesitate to use that word to describe any part of my relationship with God. But really, shouldn’t we be at least that overwhelmed by Him? Shouldn’t our every waking thought be amazed at the love of God? Shouldn’t it be difficult to even think of anything else because of the enormity of His love? Shouldn’t we try to look at it from every angle, ruminate on it, revel in it? Look at this verse. It says God poured out His love. Not a drop here and there, not even a trickle. He poured it. His love is so great that it is definitely a fire hose experience.
At my job I was trying to get concepts into my brain. But God is pouring His love into the core of my being, not just my thoughts but also my emotions. And that word for love, agape, means an active love. In other words, it’s not just an emotion. It’s an action. Of course, the greatest action was when Christ died on the cross for us. But there are so many actions God has taken out of His love for us. He created us. He formed us in our mother’s womb. He knows a thought before it’s on our lips. He pursues us, even when we ignore Him. He prepares the way for us. He prepares us for the way ahead. He is always and constantly acting out of His great love for us. I want to be overwhelmed by that.