I am a new blogger, so I have been trying to think of something great that I could share with the world. I will start off by sharing a little about myself. I am a 29-year-old campus minister in the Nashville, TN area, and I am a Christian. I realize that when I use the word “Christian,” it can mean a lot of things to a lot of people, so I will try to clarify that a little more. To some, the word “Christian” might be used to describe a person that is judgmental (which I do not think that I am) or hypocritical (which I can often be). To some, the word “Christian” might automatically put me in the Republican category (which I do not claim to be). Still others might hear the word “Christian” and cringe at the sound of it because of bad personal experiences or negative images represented in the media (e.g., Fred Phelps, Steven Anderson, etc.). For those of you that might have a negative connotation of the word, I will try to describe myself in a different way.
When I was in college, I fell in love with the God that had been pursuing me for a long time. God opened my eyes to a life full of love and meaning through Jesus the Christ. If that sounds too religious, I am sorry. I really just mean to say that I was shown the real Jesus, and I have tried to seek after Him and His Way of life ever since. All that being said, I think I will start off by sharing some thoughts about love.
Recently on my Facebook status, I simply put the word love. I really did not have any motivation other than the fact that I had just been thinking of that word for several weeks. As a result, I had several comments…more so than usual. Some were funny, some were serious, and several just wanted to let everyone know that they liked the word. I just wanted to share it, because I think there is not enough going around.
As a person who is striving to become like Christ, how important is love? It is everything. Everything that I stand for should be about love. Paul says that the entire law is summed up in one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself,” (Galatians 5:14). Jesus tells an expert of the law to love God with everything and love his neighbors as himself, and he will inherit eternal life (Luke 10:25-28). He also says that people will recognize His disciples by our love for one another (John 13:35). John says that God’s love is made complete in us when we love each other (1 John 4:12).
It is one thing to read about love and say that we love one another, but it is an entirely different thing to put it into practice. Notice that the passages above involve action. Jesus does not say that people recognize His followers based on the fact that we say we love others. The love is made known through our actions. It is simple to say but difficult to do.
I pray that as God’s followers, we strive to love people. Instead of looking at others with judgmental attitudes and condemnation, let us love as Christ calls us to love.
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