W.A.I.T. Part 10: Has Your Love for Others Become Conditional?

Back in the fall during the Occupy Wall Street Movement, I realized how much the people in this nation feel as if they are owed something. People right out of college were expecting extravagent salaries, instead of remembering that we all need to work from the bottom up. This frame of mind can soon become disastorous not only when looking for a job, but within the body of Christ.
Christ calls us to love each other, which doesn't seem like a terribly hard task at first. What some encounter, though, is that the level at which they demonstrate their love to another is not matched by the recipient. When this occurs, some have a tendency to become frustrated and begin to not want to act out of love because they feel as if they are getting nothing out of the deal. At times like this, we need to dive back into the Word, specifically Galatians 6:9-10, which says, "Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers." We should never stop being generous to others, especially fellow believers, even if it feels like a one way street. A sense of entitlement should never exist. In order to thrive as a Christian, we must continuously shower others with love, even when we don't feel like it. Our love should never be conditional (though it often is), and we should never hold high expectations of others. Each person expresses love in a different way, so comparing how someone acts towards you is futile.
I'm not saying that always demonstrating love to others is easy. My hope is that you will realize that as a human being, it's practically impossible to demonstrate unconditional love to all. This may be depressing to think about, but what should bring joy is the fact that God loves you with a perfect, unconditional love. None of us deserve it, but because we are His creation, He loves us.
In order to thrive in God's love, we must love Jesus as our Savior and then demonstrate love to those around us. Instead of focusing on how you feel others owe you for how kind you've been to them, remember that God loves you no matter what and has sacrificed His own Son to save you while you were an undeserving sinner. This thought should stir something inside of you to want to lavish others with love so that your life as a Christian begins to thrive once again. To serve as a reminder, read what Paul said in Acts 20:35: "In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.'" Through the grace of God, Paul was able to serve others as Jesus had commanded. We are also blessed with God's grace when we accept Jesus into our hearts, which will aid us in loving others above ourselves.