Blog # 437 The Daily Work of Love

Blog # 437  The Daily Work of Love

               When we love someone deeply, that person has a profound influence upon our life.  Since to love means to give, and the more we love the more we give, it stands to reason that the more I love
you the more you receive that is mine.  In this we are like one another and made one.

                 This is true of friends at school, neighbors, family, husband and wife, God, and those who love God. Sadly,however, in all of these categories there are people who do not love, do not take their love seriously, do not keep themselves aware of their love, develop their love, protect it or appreciate it daily.
                  Knowing the danger of  neglecting, forgetting or taking for granted even our love for God, it is good for us regularly to reflect upon the nature of love itself, to examine the ways we love God and one another, renew our love, and make new effort to help it grow. How many people do you really know in your neighborhood? How much time do you spend with your family other than those times you have to be with them to eat and sleep? How deep and meaningful are your conversations with your husband or wife?  What have you given to God or received from God today?  These are questions that tend to indicate the reality and depth of our love.

                When  we love someone,  everything that relates to that person takes on new value and meaning for us.  The  young mother who cherishes and stores away the first pictures her little son had drawn does not do so because of  their beauty but because of her love. The same is true with regard to our love for God and God's love for us.

                  Great Saints have always well realized their personal limitations and even  their sinfulness.  None of the Saints stood before God and boasted of their deeds.  Yet they knew God cherished their lives and found joy, to speak humanly, in all they did because of God's love for them.
And so it was on the part of the Saints.  Because they loved God and realized that God was present in all creation, all creation spoke to them of God, all creation was holy, all creation was a temple in which they discovered God's love and worshipped God.  Their love for God had a profound influence upon their everyday lives.

                 In relation to husband and wife, hobbies, relatives of one another, sickness, achievement, needs, all take on new meaning for one another because of their love.  In relation to God, all creation is His, the work of His hands.  God is present in all of creation and so all creation takes on new meaning and value for someone who loves God. Our love for God brings joy peace praise and thanks for all that is around us and all that is within.