Reason #370
Every day we take risks whether or not we know it. Some of us enjoy risks, and some of us like to play it safe. I'm a play it safe kind of girl. I never take risks. If there is any possible way to get hurt or be in danger, you can count me out. I prefer my bones when they aren't broken. And so maybe this causes me to miss out on some pretty cool adventures now and then, but if you don't take risks, then you don't have worry about getting hurt.
Relationships are risky. Aaron and I had a good conversation on this topic tonight. In any relationship, whether it be family, dating, friends, co-workers, you risk your mental, physical and emotional health. You assume that the other half of the relationship will care about you as much as you care about yourself. You trust them to keep up their end of the bargain, too. You place your confidence in them and you take them at their word. The assumption is that all promises will be honored.
The risky part about any relationship is that it's a bond between two really broken and imperfect people. People who are sinful from day one. People who, naturally, look out for #1 first and foremost. People who are going to mess up and will need forgiveness. And so that's the risk you take. Because we know full well that no one is perfect. We know that we all have our flaws. And so you risk the chance that someone will accept you for that. You risk the chance that someone will understand when you mess up and be willing to forgive you, too. And when you put it all out there, you risk the chance that they'll love you for it anyway. It's a risk we all take at one time or another.
But what if you knew every detail of someone's future before entering into any sort of relationship with them? What if you saw their behavior, their faults, their failures and were fully aware of all of the mistakes they were going to make? Would you risk it then? Would you put your well being on the line knowing what was coming down the pipeline? Would you go ahead and move forward knowing that they wouldn't keep up their end of the bargain like you would?
I know I wouldn't. But that's me, selfish, imperfect me. The me who is always looking out for #1. The me who doesn't like to take risks. The me who prefers to not get hurt. But what if He wouldn't have taken that risk? Because He knew full well what we were going to do. He knew every fault and failure we would have before we ever existed. He knew we'd be tempted and we'd give in time and time again. He knew how fragile our flesh would be. He knew we'd make excuses and that we wouldn't keep up our end of the bargain. He knew we'd love ourselves far too much. And, before He chose to take the risk and enter into a relationship with us, He knew how our decisions would affect Him. He knew that our choices would nail Him to a tree. He knew the excrutiating pain and heartache that He was going to experience solely from being in a relationship with broken and imperfect people, yet He still took the risk. He did it because He loved us that much. He cared about us that much that it didn't matter. It was worth the risk. It was worth the trials and the pain and the suffering because the joy that would come from it would be incredible. The reward outweighed the risk.
And so I praise Him for that. For risking it for me. For thinking I'm worth it. For putting His life on the line to save mine. And I'm grateful that He did this all, knowing full well what the future held. So, risk versus reward. We have to make a decision, and although risks can be terrifying for play-it-safe girls like me, there are times when the reward is just too sweet not to risk it!
#370 - Because He risked it all for me!
"For the sin of this one man, Adam, brought death to many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of forgiveness to many through this other man, Jesus Christ. And the result of God’s gracious gift is very different from the result of that one man’s sin. For Adam’s sin led to condemnation, but God’s free gift leads to our being made right with God, even though we are guilty of many sins. For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ." - Romans 5:15-17
Relationships are risky. Aaron and I had a good conversation on this topic tonight. In any relationship, whether it be family, dating, friends, co-workers, you risk your mental, physical and emotional health. You assume that the other half of the relationship will care about you as much as you care about yourself. You trust them to keep up their end of the bargain, too. You place your confidence in them and you take them at their word. The assumption is that all promises will be honored.
The risky part about any relationship is that it's a bond between two really broken and imperfect people. People who are sinful from day one. People who, naturally, look out for #1 first and foremost. People who are going to mess up and will need forgiveness. And so that's the risk you take. Because we know full well that no one is perfect. We know that we all have our flaws. And so you risk the chance that someone will accept you for that. You risk the chance that someone will understand when you mess up and be willing to forgive you, too. And when you put it all out there, you risk the chance that they'll love you for it anyway. It's a risk we all take at one time or another.
But what if you knew every detail of someone's future before entering into any sort of relationship with them? What if you saw their behavior, their faults, their failures and were fully aware of all of the mistakes they were going to make? Would you risk it then? Would you put your well being on the line knowing what was coming down the pipeline? Would you go ahead and move forward knowing that they wouldn't keep up their end of the bargain like you would?
I know I wouldn't. But that's me, selfish, imperfect me. The me who is always looking out for #1. The me who doesn't like to take risks. The me who prefers to not get hurt. But what if He wouldn't have taken that risk? Because He knew full well what we were going to do. He knew every fault and failure we would have before we ever existed. He knew we'd be tempted and we'd give in time and time again. He knew how fragile our flesh would be. He knew we'd make excuses and that we wouldn't keep up our end of the bargain. He knew we'd love ourselves far too much. And, before He chose to take the risk and enter into a relationship with us, He knew how our decisions would affect Him. He knew that our choices would nail Him to a tree. He knew the excrutiating pain and heartache that He was going to experience solely from being in a relationship with broken and imperfect people, yet He still took the risk. He did it because He loved us that much. He cared about us that much that it didn't matter. It was worth the risk. It was worth the trials and the pain and the suffering because the joy that would come from it would be incredible. The reward outweighed the risk.
And so I praise Him for that. For risking it for me. For thinking I'm worth it. For putting His life on the line to save mine. And I'm grateful that He did this all, knowing full well what the future held. So, risk versus reward. We have to make a decision, and although risks can be terrifying for play-it-safe girls like me, there are times when the reward is just too sweet not to risk it!
#370 - Because He risked it all for me!
"For the sin of this one man, Adam, brought death to many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of forgiveness to many through this other man, Jesus Christ. And the result of God’s gracious gift is very different from the result of that one man’s sin. For Adam’s sin led to condemnation, but God’s free gift leads to our being made right with God, even though we are guilty of many sins. For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ." - Romans 5:15-17
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