Love The People

"Flowers of Thy heart, oh God, are they, let them not pass like weeds away, their heritage, a sunless day. God, save the people." - Stephen Schwartz, Godspell

I am about to finish my second week of living here in South Korea, and, wow, my heart could not be more full. Last week was filled with moments in which God repeatedly reminded me of my purpose here on this side of eternity—to love Him, to learn how to better love myself as a reflection of Him, and to learn how to better love people in the same way. Again—wow! What a beautiful opportunity we've all been given in this life!

Last week was filled with moments in which God repeatedly reminded me of my purpose here on this side of eternity—to love Him, to learn how to better love myself as a reflection of Him, & to learn how to better love people in the same way.

As many of you know, I am currently going through orientation with the rest of my Fulbright cohort on Yonsei University's International Campus in Incheon, South Korea. The friends I have made here come from diverse backgrounds, differing worldviews, & unique stories of their own. All of them live, learn, and love in their own remarkable ways too—each person in our cohort is fearfully & wonderfully themselves, and I would not want it any other way. I am reminded each day as I interact with all of them that the Creator of the Universe is a Magnificent Craftsman Who makes no mistakes—He takes absolute delight in every stitch, every color, every design in the human tapestry that He has been weaving together since the beginning of time.

At the beginning of this post, I quoted some of Stephen Schwartz’s lyrics from one of my favorite musicals, Godspell. I am not sure why exactly, but God has frequently placed these particular lyrics on my heart over the last twelve days. “Flowers of Thy heart—oh God, are they...” Do you see yourself as that? Do you see the people around you as that—as the flowers of God’s heart, as the apples of His Eye, as His beautiful masterpieces? Do you need to be reminded of that again today; that, “if God cares so wonderfully for wildflowers that are here today & thrown into the fire tomorrow, He will certainly care for you” (Matthew 16:30 NLT)? Because He does & you are—you are a masterpiece, you are a miraculous stitch in the fabric that is us, and you are here for a reason.

You are a masterpiece, you are a miraculous stitch in the fabric that is us, and you are here for a reason.

We need you, my friends. This world needs you—to live, to learn, & to love in your own remarkable way just as my new friends here in South Korea do. God created each of us in His image after all. The fact that we're all so unique is a testament to just how infinite the God of the universe truly is—each person who has ever been & who ever will be is a reflection of Him; we all share a piece of our Creator inside of us. I love my Lord with all of my heart, soul, mind, & strength—of course I would want to meet as many people as I possibly can on this side of eternity because, with each new person I meet, I am given an even greater glimpse of just how big the God of the universe really is!

We need you, my friends. This world needs you—to live, to learn, & to love in your own remarkable way just as my new friends here in South Korea do.

That is why, if you ask me what I love the most about South Korea thus far, I will immediately answer: the people. It is because the Lord is still teaching me how to better love myself as a reflection of Him and how to better love people in the same way, too, because the Lord will always be my first love; love God, love myself, love the people.

With Hope,

James Davisson

James Davisson is just a small man with a big heart, serving a much bigger God.