Letting Someone Love Me

I’d forgotten the gift that is letting someone love me, if I ever knew it at all. It’s one thing to discover the joy in loving someone, and quite another to experience a clean and simple gratitude in letting somebody else love us. It’s especially difficult – at least for me – to receive love when I am covered up in need. That kind of vulnerability is frightening. But over the weekend I received, cleanly, much needed help and love and it was incredibly healing.

I hurt my back a week ago and found myself unable to do things around the house that needed to be done. I needed help. I asked my parents for help and they came and they helped and much more. They loved me right where I was, helpless in a mess and unable to get out on my own. I could see that it was their joy to help me, and it smote my heart. I have been a miser when it comes to letting someone love me.

I know the gift that is loving someone. I know the blessing that comes from it. I know the joy in being the Lord’s vessel to meet a need. Yet I have too often denied all of that to the people in my life who would be vessels of Christ’s love to me.

And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:19 HCSB

Letting Someone Love Me in Need

I am a needy creature, because that is part of humanity’s divine design. In the same way that there is joy in loving another person, there is meant to be joy in letting someone love me, without setting up conditions for how that love is delivered. I don’t get to say that I’ll only let someone love me when I’m all cleaned up and put together. In fact, my greatest need to be loved comes when I am completely immersed in the reality of my need, when I’m all alone in that need and unable to see my way clear. The whole point of vulnerability is to be defenseless. And letting someone love me in that defenseless need has been unbelievably healing.

The time that I spent with my parents was healing from start to finish. The very vulnerability that I found so frightening, and even a little shameful, was orchestrated by the Lord to remove my barriers to the love He knew I needed. I had no defense against the love He poured into me through my parents, and it was overwhelming and beautiful.

I don’t want to miss His love when it comes. I don’t want to deny the blessing of carrying that love to the people in my life. Letting someone love me in my vulnerable state of need is letting Jesus Christ love me. May God give me eyes to see who, when, and how He wants to love others, and may He never stop bringing me into the reality of my need so that Christ-in-others can love me.