Living is Loving

"What do you live for?"  "Who do you live for?"  At the very core of these two questions is the asking of what drives you to do the things that you do or why do you do the things that you do.  In other words, it is asking you what and who do you love.  Who and what do you love so much that you are willing to give up your life for them?  To live for something or someone is really saying to them, "I love you."

Think of someone you are willing to lay down your life for.  You are willing to do so because you love them.  As a people we have been called to live a life that is not for ourselves.  We have been called to live a life of love, which means a life living for the service of others.  It is the life that Jesus lived here on earth and that which He calls us to continue to live in His place.  Every miracle Jesus performed was for others.  Every parable Jesus told was to teach a lesson.  Every action Jesus carried out was to fulfill the will of the Father.  As I grow older I find it very unfulfilling living for myself.  It's very tiring and boring trying to follow the next thing that keeps my attention.  It seems that to seek my own fulfillment somehow is not fulfilling at all.  

When I realized that when I live a life that is for myself, life became less and less meaningful and the things I tried to do to only make myself feel "happy" seemed pathetic and worthless.  Have you ever felt that way before?  Perhaps the Spirit was finally saying to me, "Hello!  You're finally getting it.  A life well worth living is a life that is lived out for others."  Jesus did not live for Himself.  He came to carry out the will of His Father, which was to loose the chains that enslaved us to sin and to give us the hope of eternal life, and to show us that love and mercy is what conquers, not worldly powers - fame, wealth, and pride. 

To live a life worth living is to live a life for others, and that kind of living is loving.  

Father, thank you for loving me.  Help me to receive Your love and to love others with that love.   


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