Love Me Anyway

"A delightful, honest exploration of all the ways we human beings love, brushing away much of the clutter and confusion to explain what it really means to love--and be loved--well."--Karen Swallow Prior, author of On Reading Well: Finding the Good Life through Great Books***There may be no more powerful desire in the human heart than to be loved. And not just loved, but loved anyway. In spite of what we've done or left undone, in spite of the ways we've failed or floundered. We long for an unconditional, lavish love that we know deep down we don't deserve.Bestselling author Jared C. Wilson has incredible news for you: that kind of love actually exists, and it is an experience that is ours for the having. In his signature reflective, conversational, and often humorous style, Wilson unpacks 1 Corinthians 13 to show us what real love looks like. Through engaging stories and touching anecdotes, he paints a picture of an extravagant God who not only puts the desire for love into our very souls but fulfills those desires in striking, life-changing ways."Far from being an easy-breezy, schmoopy, sentimental thing, love is a lifelong battle for those who dare to enter the arena. To love God and neighbor starts with denying ourselves, taking up crosses, and following the One whose own love ultimately cost him his life. Those who lean into love will find over time that, though it will cost them much, it is also the pathway to great gain. Jared has done a wonderful job spelling this out for us in this wonderful volume."--Scott Sauls, senior pastor of Christ Presbyterian Church and author of several books, including Jesus Outside the Lines and A Gentle Answer"Wilson is at his best here. Funny and insightful and kind about the enormously important (and confused) subject of love. The only downside is I had 'I Want to Know What Love Is' going through my head the entire time. I think he planned that, though."--Brant Hansen, radio host and author of The Truth about Us"The best writers are faithful stewards of their scars. They craft healing words from wounded pasts. Jared has done just that in this richly textured exploration of love--real love, divine love, the kind that unmakes and remakes us. No one can write a book so honest, so poignant, who has not traveled through the ruins of lost loves and misused loves and come out on the other side radically altered by an encounter with the shockingly gratuitous love of a God who lives to forgive. Jared has. His book is a gift to us all."--Chad Bird, Scholar in Residence at 1517"Love is at the epicenter of our culture and human identity, but every love song and rom-com falls short when it comes to identity-shaping love. That is the sort of love that can only be seen in God and his gospel. By taking aim at 1 Corinthians 13, Jared shows us the roots of God's love for us through the Scriptures in this very insightful book. This love is the highest good of every human life, and, by the end of this book, you will know the beauty of being loved by God and being a lover of God."--Daniel Ritchie, evangelist, speaker, and author of My Affliction for His Glory"There are many songs, books, poems, and treatises on love, and Jared Wilson shows us the substance behind all the longings that fill them. This isn't just a book on how to love but how to be loved by the One who, knowing everything, loved us all the way through. Wilson has written a lot of books that I have enjoyed, but this one might be his best."--John Starke, pastor of preaching, Apostles Church in New York City, and author of The Possibility of Prayer"Most of us not only know what love is but think we're pretty good at it. But there are depths and applications of love to be explored--both what it means to be loved and how to love. This book is classic Jared Wilson--thoughtful, creative, biblical, and personal. Love Me Anyway will expand the horizons of your heart for what love is all about."--Mark Vroegop, lead pastor of College Park Church and author of Dark Clouds, Deep Mercy and Weep with Me"What drives Jared in this approach to ministry is his personal belief experience with the grace of God and his belief in the gospel of Jesus Christ. In Love Me Anyway, Jared explains how this grace impacts every single area of our lives, especially our relationships with others and the church. He draws from a well-known but often misunderstood passage of Scripture to call us to an approach to relationships that can only be understood by the grace of God in our own lives."--Dean Inserra, pastor of City Church in Tallahassee