Lululemons and Extravagant Love

I love to workout.

It's a new found love,

A cultivated love,

Something I had to learn to love,

Something I had to force myself to love,

But no matter how the love came about, I sit here and openly admit it.

I am a workout lover.

I love conquering a feat you never thought you would be able to,

I love the feeling you get after you complete a workout,

But most of all,

More then anything,

More then the endorphins,

More then the energy,

More then the results,

I love the clothes.

I love the way I look in spandex,

And tank tops,

And headbands,

And I think there's something about a good pair of Nikes that makes your strut a little more strut-ier.

But there is one item of workout apparel that I love more then most.

Lululemon pants.

Lululemon pants are God's gift to women.

They are God's blessings in the form of spandex.

They are the only good thing that comes with burpees.

But with all this goodness, comes a great price tag.

And my super cheap self

Or thrifty, as I like to say,

Can't seem to ever make that splurge for something I only wear when I sweat.

I don't need something that nice.

I can settle for something less.

I don't deserve something that amazing,

That glorious,

That extravagant.

Today, as I was reading in Ephesians,

(And yes, this is a forewarning, I am about to compare Lululemon to Jesus)

I realized an extravagant life is exactly the kind of life we are called to.

Not a life full of extravagant things,

But a life full of extravagant love.

"Observe how Christ loved us. His love was not cautious but extravagant. He didn't love us in order to get something from us, but to give everything of himself to us. Love like that".

Ephesians 5: 1-2 (The Message)

We are called to a life of extravagant love,

Because we are loved extravagantly.

We are loved extravagantly exactly as we are.

We are loved extravagantly exactly in the place we sit.

We are loved extravagantly no matter what we have done.

We are loved extravagantly by a God who gives all, and asks nothing in return.

This verse was a sweet reminder of how extravagntly we are loved,

But also a challenge,

To love just as extravagantly.

And how would our lives look different,

Our friendships,

Our marriages,

Our parenting,

Look different,

If we made an effort,

Every single day,

To love extravagantly?

To love people extravagantly exactly as they are,

To love people extravagantly exactly in the place they sit,

To love people extravagantly no matter what they have done,

To love people extravagantly and ask nothing in return?

This morning, I was challenged.

As I was praying for my upcoming marriage,

I was challenged that this will always be my hearts song.

To love extravagntly,

Because of the Lord that loved us extravagantly first.