Every now and then, we could all use a little reminder, not just about our next dental appointment or the sports game we need to take our child to, but about God’s love for us. In the midst of our trials and tribulations, along with the hustle and bustle of daily living, sometimes we neglect to remember that important truth. God loves you, and He loves me. Even when we don’t feel that love, even when we doubt, even when we would swear God loved everyone except for us. His love is true.
He loves us on our good days and on our worst. He loves us when we’re virtuous and when we’re sinful. There is no circumstance, no person, no anything that can change this truth.
Yet, the day will still come when we question. That day may be today, tomorrow, or eventually. When that day happens, we will need a reminder. The pastor can tell us about God’s love, as can our family, our friends, anybody, but who better to speak on God’s love than God Himself?
Whether or not you believe God speaks to us today with His own voice, through dreams, or through people and circumstances, we can all agree that God speaks through His Word. That’s where We find verse upon verse, speaking about His love. With so many to choose from, one can only wonder how we forget in the first place.
Nonetheless, whether the verses on this list speak to you or you differ to your own personal favorites, committing them to memory, posting them somewhere in your house or in a book, is a sure way to cement them in your mind. The more aware you are of God’s love beforehand, the easier the doubt will be to handle.
With that in mind, here are ten verses about God’s love to pick you up during your next dry season or rainy day.
10 Verses about God’s Love to Pick You Up
“Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will help you; I will hold on to you with my righteous right hand. (Isaiah 41:10)
God’s word reaffirms the promise time and time again that He will never leave nor forsake us. His presence is reason enough to not live in fear of the circumstances or people we encounter. He says Himself that He will help, strengthen, and hold on to us with His righteousness. What a promise to believe in, and what evidence that God loves us just that much!
“The Lord is my shepherd; I have what I need. He lets me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside quiet waters. He renews my life; he leads me along the right paths for his name’s sake. Even when I go through the darkest valley, I fear no danger, for you are with me; your rod and your staff—they comfort me.” (Psalm 23:1-4)
The Lord guides us through the good and the bad we face throughout life. Some seasons include green pastures and quiet waters, others bring us to the face of danger and darkness. Wherever we are, God is present. He supplies us with rejuvenation and His protection.
“Because of the Lord’s faithful love we do not perish, for his mercies never end. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness!” (Lamentations 3:22-23)
Sin costs us. A lot. Far more than we could ever afford to pay. Thankfully, the Lord’s love exhibited through Christ has served as recompensation for the damnation we deserve. Moreover, while our behavior can still anger and sadden the Lord in this present day, He is forgiving, renewing His mercies for us constantly.
“The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears, and rescues them from all their troubles. The Lord is near the brokenhearted; he saves those crushed in spirit.” (Psalm 34:17-18)
Though there will be times when we feel unheard and disregarded by God, Scripture reminds us that He hears our prayers. Not one of them is wasted. Though He does not act when or how we desire, we can be sure that He will respond. Sometimes even His silence is an answer.
“‘For I know the plans I have for you’—this is the Lord’s declaration—‘plans for your well-being, not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.’” (Jeremiah 29:11)
If you’re telling yourself that the plans God has for you only spell doom and gloom, then you’re succumbing to a lie. The Bible lets us know that we will face suffering. Everyone does. Yet, there is not one believer who has not also reaped blessings handed down by the Lord. He has good plans for us, enough that we should feel encouraged about the future.
“But God proves his own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8)
In His love for us, God sent His son to die for the sins of humanity. He did this not because He had to, but because of His deep love. He chose to serve us in this great way without making any demands for the sacrifice.
“For it was you who created my inward parts; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I will praise you because I have been remarkably and wondrously made.” (Psalm 139:13-14)
There are examples we can point to of God’s love in our daily lives, but the evidence for His affection existed far before we did, and far before we even knew His name.
“You yourself have recorded my wanderings. Put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your book?” (Psalm 56:8)
God loves us so intimately that not only does He know the number of hairs on our head, but He knows the number of tears we cry. He is aware of when we sit up and sit down, when we walk, when we talk. God knows us in and out, literally.
“For God loved the world in this way: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16)
The consequence of sin would have inevitably swallowed each of us. Yet, in His love for humanity, God gave us a way out, a way to become His children and find a different and better fate. To love is to will the good of another, and God’s will was to help us. That’s why the impact and teachings of Jesus remain to this day.
“We love because he first loved us.” (1 John 4:19)
There’s no comparing how we love to God’s love, and there is no way to effectively love without loving like God. However imperfect we may be, modeling ourselves after the Lord is how we make ourselves better people, and how we make our communities into better places.
Yes, suffering will find us, and yes, life is hard, but abiding in God’s love will help us turn the tide when the negativity threatens to overwhelm us. We are not alone and never have been. God is there, waiting, reaching, and seeking us with a love that is constant, persistent, and all-encompassing.
For that, we can be grateful.
A Prayer to Feel God’s Love
Lord,
There is so much in life I do not know. Some of which I’ll never know and some I still hope to know. But what I do know is that you love me. I don’t feel that way, but I know it’s true. Quite honestly, sometimes I doubt. I feel like the opposite is true. That you don’t love me. That you are against me. That you’ve sent people and circumstances to make my life harder, not to build me up but to break me down, to mock and ridicule me. Scripture doesn’t say this, but my feelings do.
I want to believe your word, but God, believing in what I can’t see seems impossible some days. And what I can see I don’t like. Nothing’s changing despite my pleas, despite my efforts. I get on my knees in prayer but feel unheard, like my words enter into a void and become obsolete. How am I supposed to keep up hope in such circumstances?
You feel so far away, but I long to have you near. Please, Lord, help me to feel your presence. Help me remember that you are right there. Help me remember that you’ve never left. I just can’t see you right now, but I want to. I need to. Lord, I need you.
In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.
Photo Credit: © Getty Images/coffeekai
Aaron D'Anthony Brown is a freelance writer, hip-hop dance teacher, and visual artist, living in Virginia. He currently contributes to Salem Web Network’s Crosswalk platform and supports various clients through the freelancing website Upwork. He's an outside-the-box thinker with a penchant for challenging the status quo.
Get in touch with him at aarondanthony.com and check out his debut short story anthology Honey Dreams on Amazon and Barnes and Noble.