Getting started is tough.
It is tough to examine myself every day and see where I can choose to love more. So far, I have been looking at it as when my blood pressure is raising about something, I try to look at it in a different light. And maybe that will work for now, but how do I really know when I should be choosing love?
Going back to the sermon, what really struck home for me was when I am feeling selfish about something, that is my chance to love someone else besides myself. Being selfish is a characteristic I have taken under closer examination in the last year and really was the chord that struck me to have this idea in the first place. How often do I put myself first in my daily routine? How often can I choose to put someone else first?
I didn't think about that much today, but it will be my focus tomorrow.
A couple of things I am thankful for - my neighbors. Seth is pretty busy and works a lot. Last year it seemed that he was always working whenever it would snow, which in turn would mean I was the one shoveling our driveway. Once again, it snowed and Seth was on call. I had shoveling on my to do list for the day, but chose surfing on the internet, doing dishes, and napping as higher priorities.
I awoke from my nap to hear the sound of a shovel scraping cement and looked out the window to see one of my neighbors shoveling my sidewalk! I got on my snow clothes (after eating a quick snack) and went outside to start my chore. It proved to be a little tougher than I thought, and so I only shoveled the half of the driveway that I would use (selfish again?) and then took a break by taking the dogs on a walk. After that I went to dinner at my in-laws and complained to Seth's mom about how I would have to shovel the other half of the driveway later that night.
When I got home though, I realized that the other half of my driveway had been snowblowed by my other neighbor while I was gone! I am definitely thankful for such kind neighbors to help me out when I am in need. Hopefully I will be able to show them the kind of love they have showed me during many a winter storm, but it probably won't be shoveling their driveways...
Monday, December 27, 2010
Sunday, December 26, 2010
Why love?
If I could sum up my experiences with God and what He's taught me over the last couple of years, it would have to be love. Love God. Love others. Let love pour out of you. LOVE. I don't think I can say I have lived with love every day since, but it has definitely been on my heart loud and clear for a while now.
A couple of Sundays ago I was struck by the sermon at church. The sermon was entitled, "A Month to Meet Jesus: Sharing Love" and it really resonated with me. Somewhere in the middle the gears in my head began to spin, and I came up with the idea to consciously choose love. What would it be like if I chose love when it was particularly difficult to do? And what would God do in my life as a result? I thought of ways that I could do this and the idea of keeping track came to mind.
So here I am. Using this blog as a tool to journal about the ways that I have chosen to love those around me and through this experience grow in Christ. To be quite honest, it is a way to expose and reflect on one of the things I struggle with most - selfishness. I really feel like that's what my choice on love is based on. I choose to love myself before thinking about others, and I hope that this experience will open my eyes on ways to switch that choice around.
Here are the words from God that inspired me to take on this challenge from BibleGateway.com
Will this be a challenge? Absolutely. I can already think of a hundred times I HAVEN'T chosen love recently, and I am excited to follow in Jesus' footsteps (to the best of my ability) and to see where He leads me in the next year.
2011 will be A Year In Love.
A couple of Sundays ago I was struck by the sermon at church. The sermon was entitled, "A Month to Meet Jesus: Sharing Love" and it really resonated with me. Somewhere in the middle the gears in my head began to spin, and I came up with the idea to consciously choose love. What would it be like if I chose love when it was particularly difficult to do? And what would God do in my life as a result? I thought of ways that I could do this and the idea of keeping track came to mind.
So here I am. Using this blog as a tool to journal about the ways that I have chosen to love those around me and through this experience grow in Christ. To be quite honest, it is a way to expose and reflect on one of the things I struggle with most - selfishness. I really feel like that's what my choice on love is based on. I choose to love myself before thinking about others, and I hope that this experience will open my eyes on ways to switch that choice around.
Here are the words from God that inspired me to take on this challenge from BibleGateway.com
Luke 6:27-36 (New International Version, ©2010)
Love for Enemies
27 “But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. 29 If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also. If someone takes your coat, do not withhold your shirt from them. 30 Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. 31 Do to others as you would have them do to you.
32 “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. 33 And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. 34 And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, expecting to be repaid in full. 35 But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. 36 Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.
27 “But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. 29 If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also. If someone takes your coat, do not withhold your shirt from them. 30 Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. 31 Do to others as you would have them do to you.
32 “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. 33 And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. 34 And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, expecting to be repaid in full. 35 But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. 36 Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.
Will this be a challenge? Absolutely. I can already think of a hundred times I HAVEN'T chosen love recently, and I am excited to follow in Jesus' footsteps (to the best of my ability) and to see where He leads me in the next year.
2011 will be A Year In Love.
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