bed-making and Jesus

I've started making my bed in the morning.

This is different from my usual mode of operation because I typically just roll out of bed in the morning and "go". "Make my bed? Why? I've got a world to go take on, and I'll just fall into it at night only to leave it in the same state the next morning."
Of course, when I'm at home I make my bed. There is no other option.

So that's why when I leave home, I absolutely refuse to make it...
until recently.

I am now making it because I want to. Nobody asks me to. Nobody tells me to. Nobody criticizes me if it isn't made quickly enough. Simply - the girls I am rooming with make their own bed and leave me to do what I will.

And therein lies the difference. There is no judgment on me for my decisions. I am accepted.
So I make my bed because I want to. I make my bed because when it's left unkempt the room looks sloppy. I make my bed because I notice that the room looks better - prettier - and I want to do what I can to make those around me happy. I curtail my own freedom of choice in deciding whether or not to make my bed for the benefit of those around me. That's what love is, right?

It's putting aside your own self-interests for the bettering of another person.

...which brings me back to Christ - the whole "we love Him because He first loved us" bit.

Jesus didn't come to earth and say, "Hey you lousy slob - you need me. Honor me. Love me." Yes, I am in desperate need of Christ's work in my life. Yes, I am wired to honor Him, to love Him. But I didn't realize that until I understood the concept of the cross. I love Christ because He first loved me - no strings attached - in a fashion defining the term, "come as you are." I honor Christ because I have a tiny understanding of the sacrifice He made for me.

The desire to reciprocate is a natural response to the abundant, lavish outpouring of love.

And that's what I think about when I think about making my bed.