Lord, please pour forth your Grace upon us so that we may follow Your command and be Your friends. As our Friend strengthen us with Your wisdom and assist us so that we may be better friends to You and to our brethren. What you ask, "love one another as I have loved you," seems impossible. We are not strong enough to love as You love. And yet, we desire to do Your will. Lord we ask You this favor, friend to friend, help us to love as you love. Then our joy will be complete.
Mary, our Hope, Seat of Wisdom, pray for us.
| John 15: 12 - 17 | |
| 12 | "This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. |
| 13 | Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. |
| 14 | You are my friends if you do what I command you. |
| 15 | No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you. |
| 16 | You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide; so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. |
| 17 | This I command you, to love one another. |
My grand daughter and her daughter, just shy of one year of age, flew to North Carolina this morning. It was reported that the baby made friends with the couple sitting next to them, and they held her almost the whole way. This unconditional love that babies give us, so spontaneously, reflects what Jesus has to "command" us to do as adults. The operative part of this, which Winston rightly says is harder than it seems, is "I chose you." Our love is not of volition, it is because we are marked as babies as the chosen of Our Lord. Thanks, Winston, for the reminder.
ReplyDeleteThank you John. We must open our eyes to the Love which surrounds us. Divine friendship is the blessed gift of our Lord Jesus. We are very "busy." Too busy sometimes to remember that Jesus offers us the gift of Himself in eternal embrace. Will we rush into the our arms of Jesus, offered with forgiveness and joy like the father of the prodigal son? Will we weep tears of Joy at returning to our heavenly Father like the wasteful son, shocked that He didn't even give us time to tell Him our "story" of repentance? He wants to celebrate reunion, we often want to explain. He doesn't desire reasons, He just wants us inside His Fatherly embrace. O Lord, please give us the grace to rush home, everyday, every hour, every minute. Into Your loving arms. Amen.
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