A lawyer once asked Jesus, in the Gospel of Matthew, what is the greatest law or commandment that God has given to God's people? (Matthew 22:35-36) In other words, the lawyer asked Jesus, what is God's dream for God's people. Jesus responded with a passage of the law from Deuteronomy , "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all you soul, and with all your mind..." and "You shall love your neighbor as yourself."
So often we think, I can't love anymore because I'm not feeling loved myself. This is a lie that the devil wants us to believe. In Father, Son and Holy Spirit, love never runs out for you. If you feel like you can't love anyone right now because you're so tired and worn out and hurt by life - the evil one is deceiving you.
When I was beginning my pastoral ministry as a student, I really struggled with showing agape love to a member of the congregation where I served at the time. He was slightly mean-spirited and negative. I remember thinking, "this guy is driving me nuts, he doesn't have a good thing to say - ever!" I brought my struggles to my mentor, thinking that he would side with my every grievance. My mentor didn't make excuses for me or my adversary. My mentor simply said, "He's a precious child of God, for whom Christ died." That shut up my complaints. My mentor and I continued to process how to handle my difficult relationship with this person and I would say that I actively tried to agape love him, as Christ does. Slowly, over time, I learned that he'd had a difficult family life. He struggled through an infantry unit in the Vietnam War. He had been married and divorced at least twice. Loving deeply is hard work. Several years later, I still think of him on occasion.
On my own, I would have written off this guy as uncaring, mean and several other characteristics that I won't mention in this email. On my own, I'd probably avoid him and others like him as much as possible. But, through the love of Christ, and some Christ-like counsel, I was able to see this person as a human being worthy of God's agape love - not just from God, but from me too.
As you bask in God's love for you, how do you love God with your whole mind, heart and soul? How do you love yourself, as God has created you to be? How do you work at deeply loving your neighbor?
-Pastor Rhonda
