Why Do I Love Jesus?

“How do I love thee? Let me count the ways…”

I quote Elizabeth Barrett Browning a bit jokingly, but in truth, choosing one thing that I love about Jesus has proven difficult.

I love Jesus because He has rescued me from myself, he has made me right in the sight of God, he fulfills his promises which gives me a lasting hope, and he doesn’t leave me the way he found me – but uses the hard things in this life for his glory and my good.

I often consider the Jesus stories in the New Testament where various people of different walks of life encounter Jesus and how that encounter changed their lives. 

He sees us. 

He loves us. 

He has a plan for us.

One of the most difficult things for me to admit has to do with the times I rejected Jesus. I clearly remember two specific times when the situations were dire and I didn’t respond well. Both times, about 20 years apart, I had been badly hurt and disappointed by people I loved and trusted, and both times, after a prolonged time of discouragement and heartache, I chose to stop clinging to Jesus and his promises and instead walked away from him. I did not believe it was worth it to follow him because I couldn’t look past the pain I was in.

And both times, Jesus proved to be faithful to me even though I hadn’t been to him. He used situations, people, and the Holy Spirit to bring me back and restore my relationship with him.

I think of Peter in the New Testament, a close disciple of Jesus, who often did stupid things and was often corrected by Jesus. As the disciples listened to Jesus explain what was about to happen leading to his death and resurrection, Peter told him to his face that he would never abandon him. Then Jesus looked at Peter and said that he would in fact deny him three times before the rooster crows. Peter adamantly denied that he would do such a thing.

 I can feel Peter’s shame when he did just as Jesus predicted he would. But Jesus didn’t turn his back on Peter, even in one of his lowest moments. Peter, of course, had to deal with the consequences of his actions, but he was not cast out by Jesus and ended up becoming a pillar in the early church.

Considering Peter’s life makes the following passage written by him all the more sweet:

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.” 1 Peter 1:3-9

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Jesus, we are so thankful for who you are — for the promises you keep, for the forgiveness you offer, and for the restoration you bring. 

Help us to never lose sight of who you are and the fact that you are indeed worth it and far better than anything this world has to offer. 

You are the giver of life and healing and we are so thankful. Amen. 

By Leslie M. Holdegraver, as shared at Genesis Church, February 2026