Because

I was driving home listening to the radio when Tina Turner's song, "What's Love Got To Do With It" came on. Being in the car by myself, I probably sang along louder than I should have. Not only that, but I'm sure I also gave other drivers a good laugh with my goofy, pathetic dance moves.

"WOAH-OH-OH, What's love got to do with it? Got to do with it... Who needs a heart when a heart can be broken?" 

I guess considering the love-sick, sex-driven, heart-aching, instant-gratification world we live in, it's a legitimate question.

But to God and in His world, love has everything to do with it.

John 3:16, arguably the most popular referred-to verse in the Bible begins by saying, "For God so LOVED the world THAT..."

Love was the reason, and love was the answer-- the reason God sent His son to die a most painful death, and the answer to Satan's attempt to destroy the world with sin.

I cannot even begin to grasp how wide and how deep His love is for me. Within it is everything I could ever hope for, and because of it I have all I'll ever need.

It is so simple, but something so complex I cannot understand. It is multidimensional and yet constant; He is more than worthy of my heart, but I am less than deserving of His.

In the sixth grade, my teacher told me a story that I, to this day, remember. I'm not sure if the story was true, but nevertheless it had a strong message. It goes something like this:

There was a professor who, on the very first day of class, give his students an exam. He told them to take out a sheet of paper and prepare to respond to a question he then wrote on the chalkboard: "Why?" He gave no further instruction and answered no further questions. Students had until class was finished to turn in their paper. They were confused and hastily wrote down as much as they could and whatever they could that, in their opinion, effectively addressed the question. The science-minded in the room gave explanations to natural phenomena. The mathematics-minded verified formulas by writing out proofs. The humanities-minded suggested reasons for basic human behavior. The philosophy-minded offered existential rationales on the purpose of life. But one student turned his paper in within five minutes of being given the assignment. As the boy went to sit back down, the professor, curious, turned over the paper to see what was written. What he saw was just one, short sentence: "Because." The professor smiled.

God loves us. Why? Because. God sent His son to die for us. Why? Because He loves us.

Instead of trying to over-think His love, we need to just let ourselves be loved. We need to accept the simple "because" answer, because there is no rational explanation for his irrational love.

“And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.”    1 John 4:16

Love has everything to do with it. 

-Rachel