Reflecting God's Selfless Love In Our Daily Lives: Is It Even Possible?

Love is in the air. ❤️💐🍫🐻

The stores and streets are filled with flowers, chocolates, and anything sweet this love month. On Valentine’s Day, we express our love for our spouse, partner, or significant other. We show our family and friends how much we care about them.

As I observe our different ways of expressing love on Valentine’s Day, I wonder how we can continue to show love for others on regular days. Is it even possible for us to reflect God’s selfless and unconditional love? This blog post explores how we can reflect God’s selfless love in our daily lives, despite our imperfections.

Inside These Reflections:

• God’s Selfless and Unconditional Love

• Loving Realistically, Not Perfectly

• How to Reflect God’s Love In Our Daily Lives

• Becoming A Vessel of God’s Love Despite Imperfections

God’s Selfless and Unconditional Love

The powerful truth I learned about God’s love is that He loves us fully and unconditionally. It is stated clearly in Romans 5:8: "But God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us.”

God sent us Jesus, His only son, who selflessly gave Himself to die on the cross for our sins. What love can be greater than this? How do we deserve this kind of love?

God’s love is not earned, but is freely given. God’s love is not based on our performance–on the number of hours we prayed, on the good deeds we’ve done, or on our personal achievements. There is nothing we can do to be worthy of God’s love. And yet, God chooses to love us despite our sins.

Loving Realistically, Not Perfectly

We may never love as perfectly as God does. But God invites us to reflect His love in our own imperfect, human ways.

Our Limitations as Humans

There are moments when I lose my temper with my child or lash out at my family when I’m tired or stressed. And it makes me feel bad for taking my stress out on the people I love. I try my best to apologize and make up with them. There are still days when I struggle, but I still try to do better. And that is the beauty of loving despite our imperfections.

As humans, we can all admit that it’s not easy to love, especially when people are hard to love or when we are busy or exhausted. There are days when loving others seems easy, but it’s not always the case. We’ll make mistakes, say the wrong things, take others for granted, and become self-absorbed. And it’s okay. God understands our limitations and struggles. He still wants us to keep trying.

Loving with Boundaries

Loving also does not mean tolerating harm and abuse. Sometimes, other people will use our love for them to manipulate and abuse us. God’s love is truthful and just. As stated in 1 Corinthians 13:6: "It [love] does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth." Reflecting God’s selfless love also means loving others while maintaining boundaries.

I find it hard to say no, especially to the people I love. I end up feeling resentful when I accommodate others, even when I’m tired or sick. So now, I am learning to set boundaries and make compromises. Because loving myself makes me love others better.

The Power of Prayer and Reading the Bible

On days we find it hard to love, let us remember this wonderful truth: God is the source of love, not us. We cannot produce love on our own. God’s love enables us to love. So when we’re running out of willpower or strength to love, we can turn to God as our source.

Praying and reading the bible helped me through the years. Praying allows me to talk to God and lay all my worries in His hands. Through prayers, I ask God for the strength to keep loving others despite my imperfections. Reflecting on God’s words through reading the bible reminds me of how deeply God loves us. Knowing how much we are loved empowers us to love others.

Coming to God to ask for love is like a car getting a gas refill. It energizes us to keep moving forward, to keep loving. 1 John 4:16 beautifully reminds us of God being the source of love: “And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.”

How to Reflect God’s Love In Our Daily Lives

So, is it possible to love selflessly on a daily basis? The good news is that nothing is impossible for God. We don’t need to die on the cross or do everything perfectly. Like the old saying, “A little kindness goes a long way”, it’s the simple acts done with love that can make a huge difference.

It's giving joyfully.

We can show our love for others through giving. We don’t have to be rich to give. It can be giving alms or donating old but usable items to those in need. It can be sharing our lunch with our classmates or coworkers. Or it can be simply saying a prayer for someone.

It’s listening without interrupting.

We may have a lot of things to do, but taking our time to listen can be an act of love. Listen to a friend vent out their problems, even without giving advice. Allow your kid to share stories in school, even if they're still learning to say the words. Let your parents tell stories about your childhood, even if you’ve heard them a hundred times. These simple moments strengthen bonds. Listening can be a quiet expression of love.

It’s apologizing sincerely when we fail.

Sometimes, pride can get in the way of apologizing when we do something wrong. Love means being humble enough to say “I’m sorry” and ask for forgiveness.

It's choosing forgiveness and compassion.

It’s easy to take revenge when someone says or does something wrong. Choosing to forgive, like how God has forgiven our sins, is an act of selfless love. It does not mean becoming a doormat and letting others abuse us. We can always forgive while maintaining healthy boundaries.

It's noticing the person everyone else overlooks.

Selfless love pays attention. A simple “hi” or “good morning” to our neighbor can make their day. Saying “thank you” to the cashier at the store, the server in the restaurant, or the security guard at work can make them feel seen and appreciated.

It’s respecting differences instead of giving harsh judgments.

We have different beliefs and points of view. Just because we don’t agree with someone does not mean we’re right, and they’re wrong. We don’t know what other people are going through, so we should not judge them. Respecting other people’s beliefs and opinions can be an act of love.

It is choosing to be kind in our own simple ways.

There are many ways we can show love to others. Small everyday acts of kindness seem ordinary, but they all mirror God’s selfless love.

Becoming A Vessel of God’s Love Despite Imperfections

God doesn't ask us to be perfect before we can love others well. He asks us to love others despite our imperfections, just as He loved us despite our sins.

I looked back on my past Valentine’s Day celebrations. My husband would usually give me something sweet like flowers, chocolates, or cake. After February 14th, the flowers wither, the sweets are eaten, and we go about our usual lives as the sweetness that filled the love month fades. But real love does not go away after February.

I realize that love can be expressed in little ways. It’s helping with household chores, taking care of each other when one is sick, eating dinner as a family, watching favorite TV shows together, and sharing random hugs. These small acts of love matter more than the grand Valentine’s Day gestures.

Jesus on the cross is a constant reminder of selfless love. It’s not about doing everything perfectly. It’s showing up with an open heart and trusting that God is working through our daily acts of love for others.

It’s okay to stumble or fail from time to time. What matters is that we keep trying. Let us ask God’s infinite love to restore and strengthen us so we can try again.

When we choose patience, kindness, respect, and forgiveness, even if it’s easy to do otherwise, we reflect God’s great love in a world that desperately needs it. Concluding this post with a bible verse from 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 to remind us what love is: “Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.”

How can you show love for others in your own simple ways? I’d love to hear about it. Please feel free to reach out to me through my contact page.