Reflection:

How can we love God?

In Matthew 22:37-39, the commandment of loving God is followed immediately by the commandment of loving our neighbour. Later, in 1 John 4:20-21, we learn that: “…whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.” It seems one important way to love God is to love others.

As followers of Jesus, we want to love our Lord and love him rightly. In John 15:12 we read, “My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.” We can take note that Jesus does not say: “Love me as I have loved you.” We show our love for Jesus by loving others.

Like faith and hope, love is a virtue that we can improve. When we love, according to 1 Corinthians 13:1-3, we will be patient, be kind, rejoice with the truth, always protect, always trust, always hope, always persevere. Let us be reminded of these things as we love others.

Prayer:

Dear Lord, you commanded me to love God, and one way to show that I love you is to love others. I pray that you will give me the gift of love, so I can love others rightly, as you have loved me.