Amazing Love of God

1 John 4:9-10 "This is how God showed His love among us: He sent His one and only Son into the world that we might live through Him.  This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for (as the one who would turn away His wrath, taking away), our sins."

      Sweet and precious Lord of Glory, there are not enough words in language to express the depth of the love You have for us.  And You created us with the limitation that we cannot find enough words, do enough deeds, or witness to enough people in our whole lifetime to express our gratitude to You.
      As a mother of two sons who decided on their own to join the US Armed Forces and to give themselves in service to preserve the freedoms we have, and having them both being placed in harm's way for that cause, I have a glimmer of understanding.  When Tom was in Iraq, he said that it was hard to be there putting his life on the line to preserve the freedom of the very ones who daily lobbed rockets at their compound and blew up the soldiers in vehicles with the IED's.  Lord, did You ever feel that was in Your humanness?  I think You must have...but Your love is far greater than ours.
      You, Father had but one Son, and He knew He would be hated and killed by the very ones for whom He would be giving His life.  He was sinless and yet You would pile all of our sins from creation to the end of time on Him and He would pay the horrible price...MY PRICE, for those sins.  He knew You would have to break the sweet fellowship He had with you from eternity past and that You would have to forsake Him for that time to bear that sin alone.  How horrible that had to be for You both!
        All of this was done for ME; a vile, selfish, stubborn, rebellious, arrogant, lustful sinner so that I could be free, cleansed, redeemed, and forgiven to live life through You!  You did it for all mankind...but even if there had been only me, You still would have done it!  How can I ever explain or understand such amazing grace?  I cannot.  All I can do is to be thankful.