God Loves You this Much

Today, I am deeply grateful for those of you who have supported the Dial Hope Foundation with a financial donation. So many people benefit from your giving!

I remember being with an older retired pastor in a congregation that he had started near the end of his life. I didn’t know him very long before he died – but I had agreed to help him with this ministry. I’ll never forget his last worship service, he turned to his congregation and as he gave the final benediction he said, “Never forget. God loves you this much…” He held both hands stretched out wide as though he were on the cross. It was a beautiful moving gesture, a reminder of Christ’s love for us.

I’ve often thought, that pastor’s final benediction was a sermon that we could hear over and over and over again. If only we could allow that message to sink in deep… If only we knew that unconditional love in the very fiber of our being, a love for us not as we should be, but as we are right now… It would be a gift worthy of sharing with a world desperately in need.

Let us pray: God of grace, I pray today for those who feel they are far from you, and for those who may be feeling guilt or shame, and for others still who are carrying heavy burdens. I ask you to meet each of us in this moment. May we sense your presence. May we know your love, a love that does not need to be earned, only accepted. As we are able to receive it, grant us your grace that we might love others as you love us; through Christ, we pray. Amen.