Monthly Thought

February 2006

How do you know if some one loves you? Let's start with your parents. For most of us we've been fortunate to grow up in loving homes. We're fed, we're clothed (even though you can look back and hope that no one else ever sees the photos, long white lacy knee high socks are not a good look), we had stories at bedtime, someone cleaned up our sick and looked after us when we weren't well, we were given treats and presents etc. Chances are we take it for granted that our parents love us.

So, how do you show them you love them back? Do you tell them? Do you give presents? Do you come home at the time you were told to? Do you say thank you for your clean clothes, meals they cook, or when they vacuum your room? Likewise, what about our siblings? How do we love them? They sure can be annoying! Friends seem a bit easier, you get to choose them and mostly we like being with them, you hang out, you're on their side when they're in trouble, if you're a girl you probably swap clothes and make up tips. All these things may well make us a lovely son/daughter, sibling, friend, but this hardly sets us apart as Christians, as people from all walks of life love their family and friends.

Jesus in Luke 10:25-37 says we must love our neighbour as ourselves. But it begs the question, who is my neighbour? Is it the folk next door, your class mates, the people you meet on the street? If you want to get technical about this the Oxford pocket dictionary says... neighbour 1 n person who lives near by or next door: person or thing next to another; fellow human being 2 adjoin border... I'm going to follow the fellow human being bit, which pretty much includes everybody you ever meet or come across. That's a lot of people. How on earth do you show love to people you don't even know? They might not take it right if you walked up and told them you loved them (but it sure would be funny, I dare you to try it, then let me know how it went), and you're probably not going to be able to afford to buy them all birthday presents, after all you don't even know them!

1 Corinthians 13:4-7 says, "Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres."

This says it's the way we treat and act towards other people that shows our love for them. Obviously we're not going to feel emotional cuddly love for people we don't know. So be patient with the old lady who's having trouble getting down off the bus, don't throw past wrongs back in peoples faces, be polite to the cold caller whose English isn't so great, be polite and show respect to your teachers, shop cashiers, keep your temper under control, even when you don't want to.

What makes this all harder is that Jesus also says we have to love our enemies! Luke 6:27-29 says, "But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who ill treat you." That's a tough thing to ask, because it includes bullies, muggers, cheating boyfriends/girlfriends, people who spread rumours about us, sometimes it may even include family members or friends as they can let us down too. It's how we behave towards our enemies that really sets us apart, and will really make people wonder about you. It's the outward expression of what's really going on inside between you and God.

Jesus says in John 14:15, "... if you love me you will obey my commands." It often easier to feel like we really love God at places like camp or when we're at which ever youth group/service we go to when we're surrounded by other Christians and we're in the right frame of mind. But loving God is not about how we're feeling, it's about what we're doing, how we're behaving. So forget about wanting to feel warm and cuddly the whole time (and then wondering what's wrong when we're not feeling like that) lets get on, find out what his commandments are (there's no shortage in the bible) and lets get our love into action.

If you have any questions, do email me catherinecandlin@tiscali.co.uk

Catherine Candlin