"Loving God"

I need to switch gears, at least for the time being. As I was praying about the message God would have me share today, I thought about what it means to 'live out Love'. Conviction is the thing that sprang up inside my heart. What does love look like? Can you tell me that? Paul gave some hint of it in 1 Corinthians 13; but to really observe love, requires Love. How do I mean? Let's take the ones that put Jesus to death, and think about the greatest act of Love ever observed by man; standing around the cross, they mocked Him, they spat upon Him, they even rejoiced in His suffering; yet, for those around Him that knew, their hearts were broken for Him. In order to see the love that Christ had for the world, as He hung there on that cross, required the looker to know the Love that was being displayed. For those that did not know, this was an act of mistaken identity, false crucifixion, or hasty injustice; and that it just those that were on His side; because those that were against Him, they were the ones mocking, spitting and rejoicing. The reason I have even brought this up, is because we have a tendency to give ourselves a pat on the back for the good we do; or, if you really want to the truth, we actually expect to be patted on the back. This is why it is so very important that we are always keeping our focus upon God; loving God first and foremost, and expecting only to need His Love to be manifested in us towards others; otherwise, we will be found wanting. Wanting what? Rewards for one; someone to come along and pat us on the back; for what, for doing what we are called to do? It is also this same focus that allows us who love God, to see the love being brought forth from others. Instead of looking for the faults of others, envying those that serve God well, or thinking ill of those that receive recognition, we look toward the work that God is doing in our midst; knowing that it is His Love at work, not only in those brothers and sisters, but in us also as we observe God's Love being poured out.