EMPOWERING LOVE

EMPOWERING LOVE

 

We love because He first loved us. –1 John 4:19

 

A young pastor replaced the beloved founder of a Christian community. While everyone encouraged him, there were three influential ladies who did not. In fact, they gave this young leader a hard time in carrying out his ministry.

This bothered him but the Lord gave him a dream that night. He went to heaven and was shown a sculpture of his life. It was fantastic and beautiful to say the least. It had a lot of color and detail. It was a sight to behold! The artwork was still in the process of completion and was being engraved in the ground. The young man cried out, “Wow, Lord, is this your work in my life?” The Lord nodded and said, “You owe it to the diggers through whom I am engraving this work of art. Would you like to meet them?”

The man turned around and saw the three church ladies.

God loves us. This love empowers us to love even the unlovable. He sends us people not just for us to love but so He could create something wonderful and bigger in our lives through His love.Ariel Driz (adriz77@yahoo.com)

 

REFLECTION:

Who are the difficult people in my life that the Lord is calling me to love today?

 

Lord Jesus, let Your love continue to empower me! Amen.

 

 

THE TRANSFORMING POWER OF THE GOSPEL

 

If you want to know what is the greatest power at work in the universe, all you have to do is think about the power of the Gospel — the power of love to transform a person from the inside out. There is no greater power than the power of love. Love is one of the most popular subjects for songs as we recognize its power and application to our lives immediately. It is love that truly mesmerizes the poet within us and can cause us to lose our sense of time when we are in the presence of someone we love.

One of the most important aspects of love is its “other-directedness.” When love is directed solely to one’s own self, it becomes destructive, as Narcissus found when he fell in love with his own reflection in the river. When he leaned over better to admire himself, he fell in the river and drowned. This is precisely the tragedy of self-love gone crazy; one cannot see beyond one’s own needs and desires and they eventually drown us in self-absorption.

The nature of the Gospel is that it is a gift for others. One of the first experiences when we have received the Gospel is the desire to share the Good News with others. This is not a mistake. This is part of the dynamic of the Good News of salvation. Jesus expresses His understanding that the Gospel is the Good News sent to those who are struggling to lift their eyes from their troubles and give them a new focus that brings them life.

The challenge we all face here is to apply the Gospel to our lives by living the Good News on a daily basis. It is easy to live as a redeemed person once in a while; the challenge we face is to do this as a consistent witness to the power of the Gospel to transform every kind of human situation. Let us rejoice that Jesus has unleashed such a power in the world — we can become sharers in the life of God through our faith in Him.Fr. Steve Tynan, MGL

 

Reflection Question:

Do I really believe that I am redeemed? If so, do I live this reality? What can I do to live the life of a redeemed person more consistently?

 

Heavenly Father, Your love is an all-powerful instrument for change. Help me to surrender to Your love and so begin to live the life of the redeemed.

 

St. Aidric, pray for us.