Just Be Fond of Him

By Pastor Justin Cooper

I've known people who stayed away from God for a long time because they felt like they didn't love him well enough to come back. They remembered what it was like when they were close to the Lord — and they figured the gap had gotten too wide. Like the love they had wasn't big enough to bridge it.

I want you to see something in John 21 that I think changes everything.

The first two times Jesus asked Peter "Do you love me?" — he used the word agape. The full, all-encompassing, sacrificial love. The kind God has toward us. And both times, Peter answered with a smaller word — phileo. I'm fond of you. I care about you, Lord. That's the best I can honestly say right now.

And the third time — Jesus met Peter right where he was. He came down to Peter's level and asked: even that — are you at least fond of me?

Now wait. That ought to do something to you and me.

"He doesn't expect you to love him like he loves you. He just wants you to love him most of all."

God knows every wicked thing about you. He knows the words you've said that you're not proud of. He knows the thoughts. The failures. The times you went back to what you knew before he called you. He knows all of it — and he loves you anyway. Every single bit of it.

Look at 1 John 4:19 — "We love him because he first loved us."

It always starts with him. Always. Your love for God isn't something you manufacture by trying harder. It's a response — a natural result of letting his love for you actually sink in. When Calvary hits you hard in the heart, it makes you love the Lord. Not because of what you wear or where you live, but because he loved you enough to die for you.

There's a story Pastor Cooper shared about a young man with a rebellious, cold heart — a guy who thought he was done with the church, done with God. A pastor told him: before you walk away, go back into that auditorium where you got saved. Look at the altar. The baptistry. The pews where your family sat. And try to tell Jesus you don't care.

He went. And he couldn't finish the statement. He broke. Because when you sit still long enough to remember what Jesus has actually done for you — it's hard to stay cold.

"If you'd just be fond of him, that'd be a good place to start — and he could use you like he did Peter."

Here's what I want you and I to take from this today: You don't have to get yourself all the way to perfect agape love before God can use you. You just have to be honest. Show up. Bring him what you've got — even if it's just a little fondness — and let him do the rest.

What you fall in love with depends on who you spend time with. You got to know your spouse. You sacrificed for them. You spent time with them. That's how love grows. It's no different with the Lord.

So here's your next step — make it specific:

Block fifteen minutes today — not to perform a devotional, not to check a box — but to sit in front of the Lord and think about what he's done for you. What he's kept you from. Who he's kept in your life. How he met your needs. Let gratitude open the door, and love will follow.

Love is what feeds your light.

Love is what keeps you in the race.

Start right where you are. He'll meet you there.