notesbynora

Scripture:
“Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.” — 1 Peter 4:8

When my granddaughter looked up at me and said, “Nonie, I love you every day—Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday, Tuesday…” my heart melted. Her love didn’t stop on Sunday. It didn’t depend on whether I had baked cookies, told a story, or bought her a treat. She just loved—fully, continuously, and without condition.

Shouldn’t we all be like that? But somewhere along the road to adulthood, we begin to attach strings to love. We develop what I call conditional love systems:

• Performance love — I’ll love you if you do well.
• Reward love — I’ll show affection when you meet my expectations.
• Behavioral love — I’ll love you when you act right.
• Gift-giving love — I’ll love you when I can give you something to fix it.

We start loving for reasons, not simply because it’s who we are called to be. But the truth is, Jesus never waited for people to deserve love. He loved tax collectors, adulterers, lepers, liars, and doubters. He met them right where they were—in the middle of their mess, their sin, their fear. And His love didn’t leave them there; it lifted them out.

Real love is not earned; it’s given. It’s not about what someone does right or wrong. It’s about who we are as followers of Christ. Love is the evidence of His presence in us. When we love freely, we reflect the heart of Jesus—the One who never withholds grace, never waits for perfection, never demands performance.

So today, maybe there’s someone you’ve been struggling to love. Someone whose choices frustrate you, whose distance hurts you, or whose behavior disappoints you. Remember: love doesn’t mean approving of everything they do—it means choosing to see them as God sees them. It means saying, “I’ll love you anyway.”

Love them on Monday. Love them on Tuesday. Love them through the heartbreak, through the silence, through the waiting. Because that’s how Jesus loves us—every day, again and again.

Prayer:
Lord, teach me to love like You do—without conditions, without fear, without limits. Help me to love people right where they are, not where I wish they’d be. Let my heart overflow with grace that reaches into the hard places and brings Your light. Thank You for loving me through my flaws and failings. May that same love flow from me to others—Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and every day that follows. Amen.