I close my eyes and I'm brought back to a gathering of family and friends who've become like family. Laughter fills the air and the only thing on my mind is what song we're going to play next. Time passes and hours that feel like minutes go by.

Oh, to be back in that moment. I felt like I was on top of the world; like nothing could bother me. So, what makes that moment different from now? Why don't I still feel that way? What has changed? Is God's love for me any different now than it was in that moment? By no means.

What has changed is my attitude. My perspective. Sure, I'm not back home with my friends and family laughing uncontrollably or singing until my face turns blue (that's never actually happened... not yet anyways), but God is still good. As a matter of fact, He is great. Is He not worthy of my praise and a good attitude in both the good and the bad times? Certainly He is.

We cannot control what happens to us, but we can control the way we respond. In the midst of difficulty and adversity we need to remind ourselves that although the things around us change and fail, God's love never will. Nothing in all of the earth can separate us from His incredible love.

But it doesn't end there. We cannot just receive his love and expect to sit idle. God calls us to love Him with all of our heart, soul, strength and mind. We need to love God with everything we have in us. He is, after all, the creator of it all. Our love for Him should shine through our words and our actions. Jesus said they will know we are His by our love. (John 13:35)  But let us not forget that we cannot do this in our strength. To try would be a waste of time. It is in our weakness that God's power is made perfect! We ought not to try and do this on our own.

Let us love by the grace of God so that He may be glorified.