Am I really writing about hugs?

I was reading a post over at Brother Marty's about hugging. And as I was pondering it later, I thought I'd write out a few of my own thoughts on the subject. When I look back over my blog one day, I may very well need to have this brought to my remembrance.

A hug to me, really doesn't seem like much. I've learned to fear it, endure it, tolerate it, welcome it from a few people (and all children), or simply accept it somewhat indifferently. Some people are huggers, and some people just simply have to learn to be huggees.

But I never really considered there to be much power in it, a simple hug, until Little One arrived. Over the months, a hug has been enough to make her stop misbehaving. Some nights when she's crying for her mommy, one long hug ends the tears and helps her sleep. A hug sometimes has changed an hour from a whiny crying hour, to an hour of happy play. A hug.

Who woulda thunk it? A hug can change an attitude. It makes sad become happy, calms the frightened, and heals the hurting. A hug.

In a different aspect of it, I remember a few months back talking with a friend when unexpectedly a rush of affection flooded through me. Suddenly, the reluctant huggee wanted to become a hugger. The conversation was random and general - certainly not something they would have expected a hug to blend into, so I didn't follow the urge. But I remember that feeling. It seemed most important because the feeling didn't come from anything except genuine affection for who they were. Not times shared, things done, or words spoken, but simply because standing there, looking into their eyes, I saw them for who they really were and loved them.

I use that feeling now as a baseline of how I should feel towards God when my love should come from a heart overwhelmed by who He is rather than what He's done.

I know that a hug works better right now for Little One than punishment does. It takes two punishments to equal the behavior change brought about by one hug. I wonder if that's why love is mentioned 442 times in the bible, and hell only 54 times. I confess, it doesn't seem like it should work. Even though I've watched it change Little One, I'm still skeptical! I just can't understand why it changes a situation.

But I've seen it happen time and time again these last three months.

As just a random side thought - thinking out loud - I wonder if that's the difference between beating and loving. You can might try and beat the devil out of someone, but the only way to get Jesus into someone is to love Him in.