The GLU That Can Hold Us Together

by

Practicing Faith

Special to United Methodist Insight | Oct. 21, 2025

Very early this morning three letters on my car license plate kept coming to mind. The letters are 'GLU' and the thought came that that could be an acronym for “God Loves Unconditionally!”

The constant bombardment of negativity by the “news” takes a toll on peace of heart, mind, and soul. The organization church can be guilty of contributing to the unpleasantness by placing obstacles (conditions) in the path of those trying to follow Christ.

Chapter three of John's gospel contains the story of Jesus' encounter with Nicodemus, a member of the church establishment who comes to talk with Jesus under the cover of darkness to learn more about how Jesus was performing miracles.

Paraphrasing verses 16-18; "God loves the world so deeply and sent Jesus not to decide against the people of the world but to "set them free from the worthless ways of the world." (First Nations Version)

The strident emphasis today on Christian Nationalism is a human-devised, totalitarian, strongly conditional method of attempted Power and Control over everyone. Even considering the instruction “you must be born from above” that Jesus shared with Nicodemus, the case can be made that the only expectation is for each individual to recognize the sovereignty of God and to follow Jesus' example of how to live with our neighbors.

Making a god small enough to handle assures that God will not be big enough to meet our needs. Placing conditions on God's Infinite Love and desire for a relationship with each person degenerates into worship of an idol.

God Loves Unconditionally and we are expected to do the same to all we have the honor to serve. Hatred, division, animosity is separated as far as “the east is from the west” and can result in idol worship. Aim high, love unconditionally, giving thanks always to God who loves us all. 

Wil Meiklejohn is a certified lay minister in the Mountain Sky Conference of The United Methodist Church.