My youngest brother got married Saturday. It’s not the wedding they had planned. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, they were forced to postpone their grand wedding plans and opt for a small, intimate ceremony and reception. For a young bride, the change of plans crushed her expectations of her fairytale wedding. 

Despite the smaller-scale wedding, there was still a small amount of stress before the ceremony. My new sister-in-law made her own bouquet and my mother made the wedding cake. There were tears at different times of the day when, again, things did not meet expectation. 

And though nothing went “as planned,” it was perfect in every way because in the middle of it all, I saw love. 

Because of love, my mom baked and decorated for hours over multiple days because she wanted my brother and his bride to have as perfect a wedding as they could have. And I watched my brother wrap his arms protectively around his bride to comfort her when she was most stressed. 

It reminded me of the great love our God has for us. God loves us when we don’t “meet expectations” and that kind of love goes beyond any love we’ve ever experienced on this earth. It’s the type of love that searches endlessly for you and holds you close when you’re about to break. It’s the type of love that comforts when nothing else can. 

God’s love for you is an all-consuming fire – never ending and never changing. As much love as I saw at my brother’s wedding, God’s love is so much more. 

How much do you need to feel God’s love today? How much do you need to show God’s love today? The coronavirus pandemic has hurt many people, not just through illness, but through mental health, financial instability and family relationships. What we need now more than ever is God’s love. 

Take time this week to dwell on just how much our heavenly father loves you and ask God how you can show his love to those hurting around you. 

“So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.” –1 John 4:16