Love is from God
but God is a flirt
who kisses us in the sunshine
then abandons us at midnight
to dance with the moon while
we wrestle with our nightmares.

Love is from God
but God is a rebel
who rejects our easy status quo
then challenges us to discomfort
and warns that good intentions
do not suffice for our salvation.

Love is from God
but I do not know
this God who roams and rages
beyond my grasp, as if to God
my trust and belief are irrelevant.
How do I love what I don’t know?

Love is from God
and within us all.
Look: there goes God, showing up
in a “you” I don’t recognize, and I’m
pissed that I should have to work to
love “you.” No, you come love me.

Love is from God
but let me look to
grace to spare me from learning to love
the way God shows up in others; let me
say “Love is imperfect” and be content
to love what is familiar and without risk.

Love is from God
but let God’s love
not be a mystery; then I will have no fear
and I will welcome God’s salvation when
it knocks at my door; then I will not need
to chase the flirt or flee the rebel. So be it.

on 1 John 4:7-21

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