Loving The Hell Out Of Them

I have a friend who works with at-risk teenage girls. Last week, one of the girls pushed her and started to run away. Sadly, this isn’t abnormal behavior for girls who haven’t learned how to form healthy boundaries or how properly to communicate thoughts and feelings. The staff members who work with the girls know the risks involved with the work and are trained in proper restraints and mediation techniques. Even so, it’s hard to be pushed and it’s a helpless feeling to watch someone run away—literally. Yet as the organization’s main supervisor likes to say: The staff is loving the hell out of the girls.

The hell.
The loneliness. Worthlessness. Betrayal. Rage.
The fears. Neglect. Abandonment. Doubts.
The abuse. Molestation. Bullying. Deep anger.
The learning difficulties. Helplessness. Aggravation. Anxiety.
The hell.

They are loving the hell out of them.

…

I love you. Take a moment, be still, and thank about that. I am the Creator of the universe, the Ruler of time, the Master of all you see—and I love you. My love is so big that it fills up all of space, time, and eternity. I know that you don’t fully understand the hugeness of my love for you. You see glimpses of it now—as you feel me guiding you, drawing you closer to me, and answering your prayers. But one day you will see me face-to-face. Then you will know exactly how wide and long and high and deep my love for you really is. For now, just know that my love is so huge it cannot be measured. And it goes with you through every moment of every day. (from Jesus Calling for Kids).

And it goes with everyone. Me. You. Our family. Our friends. At-risk teenage girls and elementary school boys. The people who annoy us and bother us the most—whether we know them personally or not.

God loves all of us.
Joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control, and peace
Love all of us.

God is love and loving the hell out of all of us.

…

I think I want to love the hell out of people, too.