This past Sunday at church, we worshipped to Fierce by Jesus Culture. The chorus is,
Like a tidal wave
Crashing over me
Rushing in to meet me here
Your love is fierce
Like a hurricane
That I can’t escape
Tearing through the atmosphere
Your love is fierce
As we were singing, I began to really think about the words. Hurricanes and tidal waves are such destructive things. Living in North Carolina, I am very aware of people still dealing with the aftermath of Hurricane Matthew. There are still many people in the Caribbean, southern United States, and other areas that are still living with daily reminders of how hurricanes can impact you.
In the middle of worship, I really began to think if this was a fair comparison of God’s love. Is God’s love really destructive? These communities that have been hit by hurricanes will be dealing with the destruction for months, if not years. They will probably never forget what happened. Their lives will not be the same.
Usually I think of God’s love as the thing that is rescuing me from the destruction. Then it hit me. There are so many things in my life that need to be torn down. There are sins in my life that have built up strongholds. 1 John 3:8 says, “But when people keep on sinning, it shows that they belong to the devil, who has been sinning since the beginning. But the Son of God came to destroy the works of the devil.” This is not a great “make you feel good” Bible verse. You probably won’t find it cross-stitched on many pillows.
Jesus came to destroy the work of the devil. Jesus came to destroy the sin in my life. There are times that I need his love to be like a hurricane. Sometimes I need Jesus to wreck my life. The process may not be pleasant or fun, but it will have a lasting impact on my life.
until next time…