As children we sing it with abandon; with gusto in the pre-school Sunday School class.
Jesus loves me this I know. J
Children also sing it without conscious thought! L
For the Bible tells me so.
How do I know Jesus loves me? The Bible tells me so.

Therein lies the glitch:
What if I am not trained to hear what the Bible tells me? Will I not know that Jesus loves me? Possibly.
And if I don’t know that Jesus loves me, what will my life be like?

Last week I met a new friend. We were talking about the Bible, our lives, and what we were hearing from Jesus. She shared about pondering the story of Jesus coming to visit Mary and Martha. (Luke 10:38-42) As she pondered she heard Jesus whispering personally to her choose me.  That’s been her mantra each morning, choose Jesus. Those words are giving direction to her day; they are the fence that protects her.

My friend knows Jesus loves her. His daily guidance as she pays attention to his words for her is the proof. The Bible told her so as she pondered Mary and Martha’s story.

I am hindered in my understanding of Jesus’ love for me when I stop short of listening for it. I’m content to know the facts recorded in the Bible. I even make applications based on the facts. But until I learn to listen for Jesus’ personal love for me embedded in the facts, I won’t know that Jesus loves me ~ even when the Bible tells me so.

“Most of your unhappiness in life is due to the fact that you listen to yourself and talk to God.”
David Martin Lloyd Jones

“Mary who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to his teaching. … Mary has chosen the good portion, which shall not be taken from her.”
Luke 10, parts of verses 39 and 42