Love One Another

Day 1 & 2 (from Soul Purpose)

"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know you are my disciples, if you love one another." John 13:34-35

One of the biggest misunderstandings we have in the Christian life is in thinking that we can get along with God and not get along with each other. Author Unknown

Jesus, in His life, demonstrated a wide variety of love. At times He was tender, other times radical, others tough. Begin to develop a list of the different stories/incidents where Jesus demonstrated love for others. What do you learn from each of these stories about what it is to love like Jesus?

Disciples are recognized by their love for one another. What an amazing truth! The question is, given our propensity for selfishness and pride, how do we really love one another?

...if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. Love is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.... these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

Do you notice the "universals" in that verse? The "love always" and "love never".

Busyness is a great enemy of relationships. We become preoccupied with making a living, doing our work, paying the bills and accomplishing goals as if these tasks are the point of life. They are not. The point of life is learning to Love- God and people. Life minus love equals zero. Rick Warren, The Purpose Driven Life

Yesterday, I heard a women say something that put into words what I had been feeling, but didn't know how to express. She said something along these lines, "Being on-line is a source of communication, but a false sense of relationship." We can get caught up in the talking and chatting, that we neglect to "feel" and "love" in a REAL way. Blogging can be a blessing and a curse in the same way. There is no way for me to be personal... beyond a point... with each person reading my thoughts. I don't know everyone that reads this. I try my very best to let love reach to each... for it is truly my heart. However, I have also felt the inadequacy of it. It allows people to "look in" without getting "connected". That I don't like. I want to be connected FOR REAL! I see how many deep friendships have been lost for the sake of having time for a massive amount of shallow friends. Sad, really. But.... the hope... the faith.... LOVE can change that! Will you be changed? I'm learning.