Love...God, Neighbor, Self

~~~ Hosea 14:2-10 ~~~ Psalm 81 ~~~ Mark 12:28-34 ~~~

I am the Lord your God: hear my voice.

At least during this time of Lent remove your ear plugs.

God has amazing things to tell you concerning his love for you.

There is only One God...

He is One and there is no other than he.

And to love him with all your heart,

with all your understanding, 

with all your strength,

and to love your neighbor as yourself

is worth more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.

This profound response was given by Jesus.

It may be easy to say that you love God,

but do you love him completely?

Are you holding back part of your heart from God?

Have you given God all of your understanding?

Have you asked him for an understanding of his will in your life?

Do you actually want God to give you additional understanding?

Is it easier to claim ignorance rather than responsibility?

Is it easier to ask for forgiveness than permission?

How much strength does it take to love God?

Why does it even require strength?

It should be easy for us to love God with our whole being,

but the catch comes in the second part.

...and to love your neighbor as yourself

is worth more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.

We often stop short of fully living this part.

Notice that this is written as one sentence.

Jesus did not say that loving him is all you need to do

 to enter the kingdom of heaven.

The concept of loving God and loving 

your neighbor is not even separated by a period.

It is one together.

Is God telling us that if we do not love our neighbor

 then we are not loving him?

How does that make you feel?

Perhaps it is the complete love we have for God 

that gives us the motivation to love our neighbor to the same degree.

Lent is the proper time to make amends

 with those estranged from us.

Loving God to the fullest comes with the necessary 

blessings to love your neighbor in kind.

~~~Peace~~~

How Do You Love?

~~~ Hosea 14: 2-10 ~~~ Psalm 81 ~~~ Mark 12: 28-34 ~~~

I have had students who could recite back information but not understand the meaning of the words. Several birds can learn to speak very clearly what they hear. A parrot speaks without comprehension of the sounds it makes. Young children can use words heard from their parents without having a clue as to what they mean.

The scribes come to Jesus inquiring about the most important commandment. Jesus responds, "...you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength."

How can we make this kind of love more than just mere words? How do we love the Lord with heart, mind, soul, and strength? I think if we look at love as an action word and not an emotion; we will have something more tangible. Love is a decision you make each and every time you 'feel' love. Yes it is true there are certain chemicals released into the brain when two people are 'in love', but those chemicals eventually dissipate throughout your body.

Love is not dependent on the words you choose to say. Love has more to do with your actions. Are you living your life in a loving manner? Do you consistently treat others the way you hope to be treated? God has placed into each heart the desire and capacity to love him.

When I witness the loving interaction between a mother and her baby I am reminded of the way God wants us to love him. But more than that it is the model for how God wants us to love others and how we are to ultimately love ourself.

If we want to grow in fulfilling this commandment of love we should consider how we choose to love those around us. It is easy to love those we feel in harmony with, that is not the issue here. It is those 'other' people that we do not 'feel' like loving that Jesus is directing us to love. This is where strength from God is a necessity. It is so much easier to dismiss those we would rather not love; those who do not fit into our picture of who we are willing to love.

We rarely have our picture taken with those we do not already love. Browse through your photos sometime and see if you find any which include a person you do not love. If you do find such a person included, ask yourself 'Why?' Pause a moment.
Say a brief prayer for that person's welbeing.


Jesus continues, the second is this, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself."

I know some people who do not love themselves, sad but true. If you cannot love yourself then this commandment probably makes little sense to you. In fact this commandment might make you feel uncomfortable and angry. If you do not love yourself why would anyone else be worthy of your love?
Why would you want to love anyone else?

I believe we were put on this earth to love.
How you accomplish living this love is up to you.
As always you do have a choice. Choose to Love with your whole heart, your whole mind, your whole soul, and with all your strength.
God loved us first. He loves you!