In order to find deeper insight in selected quotes from Max Lucado’s A Love Worth Giving, I used Lucado’s understanding of spiritual love to change ‘love’ to ‘agape’ in the following quotes:
“Would we share agape as God shares agape? Then we start by receiving God’s agape. “May your roots go down deep into the soil of God’s marvelous agape.” {Ephesians 3:17}
“John urges us to “rely on the agape God has for us.” {1 Jn. 4:16}
“Agape cares for others because God has cared for us. Because God had agape for us first, agape responds. Because God was gracious, agape forgives the mistake when the offense is high. Agape offers patience when stress is abundant and extends kindness when kindness is rare.
“We have no thermostatic impact on agape; [whereas] our love depends on the receiver of the love; and our love will be regulated by their appearance, by their personalities. Not so with the agape of God. God’s agape is born from within God, not what God finds in us. Agape is uncaused and spontaneous.
“The abundance of our love does not increase agape. The lack of our love does not diminish agape. Our goodness does not enhance agape, nor does our weakness dilute agape.
“To be more loving begin by accepting your place as a dearly loved child. “Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children, and live a life of agape, just as Christ shared agape with us.” {Ephesians 5:1-2}
“Many people tell us to love. Only God gives us the power to do so.
“You have a deep aquifer of agape from which to draw. When you find it hard to love, then you need a drink! Drink deeply! Drink daily!
“Drink deeply of God’s agape for you — [that] fills your heart with agape worth giving. Agape enables you to put others before yourself, and be quick to applaud the success of others.
“We will receive first so we can give later. We will drink deeply from heaven’s endless agape. And when we do, we will discover agape worth giving.”
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