Do You Love Me As I AM

Do you love me as I am?

I am sitting on the wooden bench in my church, listening to the sermon, when the small, distinctive voice pierces my mind with this question.

There is no mistake in recognizing this voice: it is tender and strong; clear and distinctive; full of authority and palpable love. It’s the voice of the Holy Spirit.

I hold my breath and then listen again, pondering what this question means. I sense it is a question I can’t ignore, and my answer will reveal a lot about myself and my relationship with Jesus.

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God Knows and Loves Us as We Are

We all want to be known and loved as we are, fully accepted, and completely safe to be ourselves.

God loves us so: without conditions and reservations, with full devotion and passion, with all His mind, heart, and strength.

He has proven this countless times, crossed all boundaries, and paid the highest price to remove the walls between us at the cross.

He loves us as we are–not a desirable version of ourselves, not our perfect copy, not our idea about ourselves.

God loves us as we are–not a desirable version of ourselves, not our perfect copy, not our idea about ourselves. #Godslove #encouragement #truelove Share on X

Living Loved

God knows everything about us and in us; He knows us inside out. God knows all our specifics, unique making, weaknesses, shortcomings, struggles, secret sins, wounds, talents, the way we talk, the way we think, the way we act, and the way we live.

He knows us as we are in every moment in space and time, and He knows what we are becoming. God sees everything as it is and He loves us. All the time.

To acknowledge and live in this reality is awe-inspiring and soul-shaking as the psalmist discovers:

“You have searched me, Lord, and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue you, Lord, know it completely. You hem me in behind and before, and you lay your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain.” (Psalm 139, 1-6, NIV)

Do You Love Me as I AM?

We all want such love. God wants it, too.

He is the Person in whose image we are made and He longs to be known and loved as He is.

The problem is that often we don’t love Him as He is, but we love and worship our ideas and imaginations about Him. This form of subtle idolatry leads our hearts astray and damages our relationship with Him.

It is not a coincidence that in the beginning, God revealed Himself to Moses with the name Jehovah (I AM).  

God said to Moses, “I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AM has sent me to you.” (Exodus 3:14)

He is the great I AM, the One who was, Who is, and Who will be.

Our deepest need and God’s greatest desire is to love Him as He is with all our minds. Then we not only receive and enjoy the invaluable gift of being fully known, but we also give this gift to God.

Our deepest need and God's greatest desire is to love Him as He is with all our minds. #loveGod #encouragement #lifeoffaith #personalgrowth Share on X

The Danger of Loving Our Ideas about God More

It sounds clear and simple, but the biggest danger for us is to slip into loving our ideas and imaginations about God more than we love Him, as He is in reality and has revealed Himself in the Bible.

How can this happen and when are we most prone to do this?

It can happen when we have a strong desire or need on which we focus and we need Him to fulfill it. Such focus can lead us to regard God as our genie in the bottle, as a means to get what we want.

Then we desire and love Him not for Who He is, but for what He can give us. Our controlling desire perverts our thinking and diverts our love.

This happened to me, too, when I let my unfulfilled desire to become a mother obsess my mind. My fellowship with the Lord was dominated by making Him do what I so desperately wanted and needed. This robbed my peace and freedom and damaged my body and soul.

Loving God in the Fullness of His Personality

Another dangerous situation occurs when we want or like a certain part of His character more or ignore others.

God has a complex character and we can’t afford to magnify one part of Him and reject another.

For example, He is the God of love, but He is also the God of justice and judgment. He is our Healer, but it is up to Him if and when, and how to heal a person. He is the Lion of Judah, but He is also the slain Lamb.

We must examine our ideas about God and ask Him to lead us to know and love Him as He Is.

Freeing God from Our Expectations

One helpful way to do this is by paying attention to our desires and needs and choosing to free God from our expectations, letting Him be the God He is.

Let our genuine prayer be to align our hearts with His, our desires with His, and our thoughts with His. Let us love what He loves and hate what He hates.

“Do you love me as I AM?”

This is not just a question God asks you today, but a tender invitation for the greatest love story you can experience.

More Resources to Help You Cultivate a Loving Relationship with God

If you need additional resources to help you cultivate friendship and intimacy with God, and grow in your love for Him, I highly recommend these books.

Draw Near: How Painful Experiences Become the Birthplace of Blessings by Hadassah Treu

Kissing Guilt Goodbye by Enliven Devotionals

Transforming Your Thought Life by Sarah Geringer

Knowing God by J.I. Packer

Letters to the Church by Francis Chan

Forward: Discovering God’s Presence and Purpose in Your Tomorrow by David Jeremiah

Reasonable Faith: Christian Truth and Apologetics by William Lane Craig

Faith Talk: Christian Women & The Gospel  by Heather Hart and contributing authors

Lean into Grace by Stacey Pardoe

This page contains affiliate links, which means I make a small commission at no extra cost to you. The commission I make from these items will help keep this blog going. Thank you!

Your Turn

Do you know and love God as He is? Share in the comments and on social media if you found this article helpful. Thank you!

We must examine our ideas about God and ask Him to lead us to know and love Him as He truly is. #loveGod #encouragement #spiritualgrowth Share on X

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