0221 你真的爱祂吗？
她在我身上作的是一件美事。《 马可福音14:6》
如果我们所谓的爱不能让我们超越自我，那它就不是真正的爱。如果我们认为爱就是谨慎、明智、合理、精明、并且从来不走极端，那我们已经错过了真正的意义。这可能描述了感情，可能会给我们带来温暖的感觉，但这并不是对爱真实准确的描述。
你曾否因爱神而被推动去做某事，不是因为你觉得那是有用或你有责任去做，或者其中对你有什么好处，而仅仅只因你爱祂？你曾否意识到你可以给神一些对祂有价值的东西吗？或者你只是坐在那里梦想祂救赎的伟大，而忽视了你可以为祂做的一切事情？我不是指那些可能被视为神圣和奇迹的工作，而是普通、简单的人类事物——那些向神证明你完全降服于祂的事物。你曾在主耶稣心里创造过伯大尼的马利亚所创造的事吗？ 「她为我做了一件美事。」
有时候看起来好像神在观察我们是否会给祂哪怕是很小的降服礼物，只是为了表明我们对祂的爱有多么真诚。降服于神比我们个人的圣洁更有价值。对个人圣洁的担心会导致我们把目光集中在自己身上，我们出于害怕冒犯神而变得过度关注自己的言行举止和外表。一旦我们降服于神，「爱既完全，就把惧怕除去。」（约翰一书 4:18）。我们应该停止问自己「我有什么用」并接受这样一个事实，就是我们对祂来说确实没有多大用处。问题从来不在于是否有用，而在于对神本身是否有价值。一旦我们完全降服于神，祂就会一直通过我们来做工。
来自章伯斯的智慧
我们的危险在于淡化神的话来迎合自己。神从不调整祂的话来迎合我；祂调整我来符合祂的话。 《不知往何处去》
0221 Do You Really Love Him?
She has done a good work for Me. —Mark 14:6
If what we call love doesn’t take us beyond ourselves, it is not really love. If we have the idea that love is characterized as cautious, wise, sensible, shrewd, and never taken to extremes, we have missed the true meaning. This may describe affection and it may bring us a warm feeling, but it is not a true and accurate description of love.
Have you ever been driven to do something for God not because you felt that it was useful or your duty to do so, or that there was anything in it for you, but simply because you love Him? Have you ever realized that you can give things to God that are of value to Him? Or are you just sitting around daydreaming about the greatness of His redemption, while neglecting all the things you could be doing for Him? I’m not referring to works which could be regarded as divine and miraculous, but ordinary, simple human things— things which would be evidence to God that you are totally surrendered to Him. Have you ever created what Mary of Bethany created in the heart of the Lord Jesus? “She has done a good work for Me.”
There are times when it seems as if God watches to see if we will give Him even small gifts of surrender, just to show how genuine our love is for Him. To be surrendered to God is of more value than our personal holiness. Concern over our personal holiness causes us to focus our eyes on ourselves, and we become overly concerned about the way we walk and talk and look, out of fear of offending God. “…but perfect love casts out fear…” once we are surrendered to God (1 John 4:18). We should quit asking ourselves, “Am I of any use?” and accept the truth that we really are not of much use to Him. The issue is never of being of use, but of being of value to God Himself. Once we are totally surrendered to God, He will work through us all the time.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
Our danger is to water down God’s word to suit ourselves. God never fits His word to suit me; He fits me to suit His word. –Not Knowling Whither, 901 R