Day 12 | Mark 12:30-31
Jesus replied, “The most important commandment is this: ‘Listen, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord. And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength. The second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself. No other commandment is greater than these.” Mark 12:29-31 (NLT)
For Reflection:
Love. Just love. A commandment that is so simple, yet so complicated at the same time. There are infinite possibilities and nuances and intricacies to love, how am I to know what to do? So, I turn to God and ask. What does this really mean? What does it mean for me today? What does it mean for humanity? What does it look like to love God with my whole self? What does it feel like to love others as myself? What about in that particular relationship or that particular situation? I turn it over in my mind, I test it out in my actions, I sense it in my soul. I discuss it with others also trying to figure out what it means to love the Lord our God. We pray about it, we talk about it, we practice it, we feel it. Sometimes it seems clear and most of the time murky. Sometimes my heart, soul and mind feel in tune with this love and other times I hardly want to find it at all. But each time I turn myself towards this love, I sense that maybe this very act of searching is what it’s about; this pursuit of love for God leads me to the very connection with God that allows me to love. When I look for opportunities to love others, my connection with them deepens as I see them as God does, as innately lovable. In order to love, we are constantly turning towards God, others and ourselves. By commanding us to love, He was inviting us to connect. As if the connection within God himself - Father, Spirit, Son - is also in my capacity to love with my - heart, soul, mind - and also in my relationships with - God, others, self. This commandment is not merely an order to do the right thing, it’s an invitation to connection, to the weaving back together of what was broken, in love.
Let us Pray:
Dear God, You love so abundantly and you invite us into this love. I love so imperfectly. Sometimes, I don’t know what it really means to love You or others or myself, and other times I don’t even want to. Forgive me for my unloving ways. I praise You for the way that You love and I long for more love for You, for others, for myself. As I spend time turned towards You, reveal to me what it means to love You with all my mind, heart, soul and strength. Reveal to me what it looks like to love others as myself. Keep me here with You, connected to You, turning to You, the source of perfect love and show me opportunities to connect with others in love. Amen.
Questions:
I wonder what it might look like to love God with all of my heart, mind and soul today?
I wonder what it might look like to love others as myself today?
What habits and practices do I already have that keep me connected to love and moving toward it?