God is Love

“How did you see Jesus today?” was the conversation starter for tonight as we sat on the dusty sofas in the main room and enjoyed a rare piece of chocolate cake.  

I thought through the events of the day – an ordinary day in which I really didn’t feel like anything extraordinary happened. There was no outstanding “aha” moment or special revelation. It was kind of just a regular day.  

Then, I remembered one simple moment that was the highlight of my day. I sat down in the baby room with the legs stretched out on the floor. First, Rita came to me and plopped down on my right thigh. I snuggled her close and whispered, “Mum nungafo” in her ear to tell her “I love you” and gave her a big kiss on the cheek.

 

Then, Steve waddled over with that cute smile on his face, so I reached for him and sat him on my left thigh.  

Next came Monica, fighting for the spot closest to my lap but settling for a seat on my lower right leg. Deudonne took the spot opposite her on my left leg.  

I felt someone tugging at my hair and turned my head to see Latif’s eyes beaming right into mine. He laughed, and we played a short game of “where’s Latif?” by my turning my head back and forth over my shoulder, trying to see him behind me. He put his arms over my shoulders, lifted his feet off the ground, and hung completely on my back. I would have toppled over had I not four other kids weighing down my legs.  

Gelilou sat across from me with a beat up toy dump truck, pushing it back and forth between us. Every time I got distracted by one of the other kids in my lap, Gelilou would shout my name “Ash-ee-lee!” in his adorable, high-pitched voice, and wait until I gave him eye contact. He would then nod and push the truck back to me.  This happened time after time, but I think he thought it was fun to call my name and get my attention over and over again. 

“I don’t know why I am sharing this story,” I told the others, “because it was such a simple moment. But in a matter of five minutes, I had six kids in my lap. Then they started tickling me and shoving things in my face and laughing because I could not move. I literally could not get up because I was weighed down with African children!”

I then paused to contemplate why I had chosen this moment in particular as my “Jesus sighting” for the day. At first, I wasn’t even sure.

Then I thought about Harouna, a precious little 16 month old boy. We think he is deaf and blind, but it is difficult to tell sometimes. He is being evaluated for cerebral palsy because we think he might have that, too. Because he is so easy-going and low maintenance, he often gets neglected by the caregivers because they have 20 other children to look after. That’s why I try to give him extra attention and love. The other day, I picked him up and took him for a walk outside in the courtyard. I strolled slowly and talked to him the whole time, just speaking truth and love over him. I sang a little bit, too, and he melted into my arms and rested his head on my chest. In that moment, too, I saw Jesus.

 

Still, I could not put my finger on it. What exactly about these moments made them so holy? What made me feel the presence of Jesus?

I saw Jesus in Kassoum when he fell asleep in my lap. And in Mariam when she came to me when she burned her foot. And in Monica when she ran into my arms when she saw me coming from the house.  

In a way, I felt terribly selfish. In all these instances, I saw Jesus because I felt loved. And suddenly, it all made sense to me. I understood why these little moments felt so special and so holy. I realized why I see Jesus in times such as these.

 

It is because God is love. When we experience love, we experience God. Sometimes, we are on the giving end. We give love, and we see Jesus in that. But sometimes, we are on the receiving end. We receive love, and we see Jesus in that, too. 

Another intern here once said to me, “Sometimes I think Jesus affirms His love for me through these children.” And I have to agree.  

Love is not an adjective to describe God. It is the very essence of who He is. Love does not allow us to understand God, but rather the nature of God allows us to understand love. Knowing love is not what helps us understand who God is, but rather knowing God enables us to understand what love is. I don’t know if that even makes any sense because I have a hard time putting it into words. But I used to think that love was a word we created to describe what God is like. Now I am realizing that God is love. And love is God.  

So the next time you have an “ordinary” day, take a second look and you may possibly see something more. May you come to know and experience Jesus Christ through the giving and receiving of His incredible love.  And may this simple truth motivate you to love others in a way that they have never been loved before because in doing so, you may introduce them to God Himself.