Where Do We Find Unconditional Love?

As David returned to his hometown, he yearned for the unconditional love Samuel mentioned even more, then he sensed it in The Presence…

[David’s Diary Entry]

In the quietude of Bethlehem, I find myself pondering the elusive nature of unconditional love The Prophet mentioned. Even in the home of my youth, where love should be as natural as the air we breathe, I’ve found it conditional, limited. My father’s gaze often seems distant, clouded by the burdens of age and responsibility. My mother, too, is a well of love, but even wells can run dry. It’s a love tinged with human frailty, a love that, while deep, has its boundaries [1].

And so, in the tranquility of the fields, surrounded only by the bleating of sheep and the rustling of the wind, I find myself alone, yet not lonely. For in this solitude, I am met by a Presence far more comforting than any human embrace. It’s as if the very atmosphere around me becomes a sanctuary, filled with a divine intimacy that no earthly setting can offer. My soul is parched, like the arid lands I tread upon, yearning for a love that neither friend nor family can fully provide.

Oh, how I thirst for You, O Living God [2]! My very being longs for Your touch, as if I were a desert wanderer, desperate for a drop of water. I’ve felt Your living presence, Your active hand in my life. You, who delivered me from the claw of the lion and the paw of the bear, are not a distant God but a God who acts, who saves. Your love, O Lord, is like a well that never runs dry. It’s a love that transcends all understanding, a love that fills the caverns of my soul.

I’ve seen Your power and glory in the sanctuary of Your creation. The heavens declare it, the earth proclaims it, and my heart can’t help but echo their eternal song [3]. Your love is better than life itself, and so my lips will glorify You. I will bless You as long as I live; in Your name, I will lift up my hands. My soul will be satisfied as with the richest of foods; with singing lips, my mouth will praise You.

As I lay on this bed of earth, gazing at the tapestry of stars You’ve woven, I remember You. I meditate on You through the watches of the night. For You have been my help, and in the shadow of Your wings, I sing for joy. Even when the world turns its back on me, even when I can’t find a friend to confide in, You are there. Your right hand upholds me.

And so, I pen these words as a testament to the only love that has never failed me. A love so profound, it turns even the most mundane moments into holy ground. A love so steadfast, that it follows me through every valley and atop every mountain. O God, who else do I have but You?

David wrote in Psalm 63:1–7 (NIV)
You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you;
I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water.
I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory.
Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you.
I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands.
I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods; with singing lips my mouth will praise you.
On my bed I remember you; I think of you through the watches of the night.
Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

How’s your relationship with God? Share a prayer to God with your friends.

[1] We don’t know much about David’s relationship with his parents, but what he wrote in Psalm 27:10 make us wonder.
[2] Up to this point, the term “living God” only used twice in the Bible in Deuteronomy 5:26 and Joshua 3:10, both in the context of God’s action. It is very plausible that David saw God as a “Living God” (1 Samuel 17:26) since he experienced God rescuing him from the claws of the lion and the the bear (1 Samuel 17:37) emphasizing God’s active, saving power in his life.
[3] David also sees God from nature in Psalms 19:1-6