Purpose of Money: Make Love Work

Mark Nepo in his book, The Book of Awakening, claims the "only true purpose of money was to help make love work....to use whatever money I can afford to make love work...."

He says, "we've squandered our chances to love along the way."

He challenges us to "act on the love you feel now, " and "be the love you feel now." (p. 76-78)

A Prayer to Love

O my God,

Let me walk in the way of love

which knoweth not how to seek self

in anything whatsoever.

But what love must it be?

It must an ardent love,

a pure love,

a courageous love,

a love of charity,

a humble love,

and a constant love.

O Lord, give this love into my soul,

that I may never more live nor breathe

but out of a most pure love of Thee,

my All and only Good.

Amen

(by Dame Gertrude More)

Holy Vision

"Love is not blind; love is the holy vision." (p. 397, One Thousand Gifts, Ann Voskamp)

Love does see, it sees beyond what human eyes can see. Love sees what is invisible, what is to come. Love sees further down the road than the eye can see. Love looks for eternity.

A Dare to Notice

Ann Voskamp in her book One Thousand Gifts, dared "to write down one thousand things I love." She declares, "It really is a dare to name all the ways that God loves me. The true Love Dare. To move into His presence and listen to His love unending and know the grace uncontainable. This is the vault of the miracles. The only thing that can change us, the world, is this - all His love." (p. 170)

Attempt today to claim those thousand gifts of life and love. As we see and take notice of the everyday miracles around us and appreciate the beauty in them, we will see the love in them as well. Take the dare.

Knowledge & Love

"Knowledge of God is commonly a measure of love.

The deeper and more extensive your knowledge, the greater will be your love."

(Brother Lawrence)

How's your knowledge of God?

Does your knowledge reveal itself in love?

Set the Agenda

In their book, UnChristian, Kinnaman & Lyons declare that "Love is the agenda." They use John 13:35 for this declaration: By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.

Remember your agenda. Remember the agenda. It's only about the love.

Loving or Judging, that is the Question

In their book, UnChristian, Kinnaman & Lyons describe love as the "opposite of judgmentalism."

(page 200)

The next time you start to judge, check yourself, and see how you can love them instead of judging them.

Our Mindset Effects Our Love

John Piper preached in a sermon:

"It is no heavenlimindedness that hinders love.

It is worldlimindedness that hinders love.

How can I maximize my enjoyment of God for all eternity while I am an exile on the earth?

And his answer is always the same: by doing the labors of love.

When religious people fail to love, it is not because they have fallen in love with heaven,

but because they are still in love with the world."

(quoted in The Hope of Glory, p.37,38, Sam Storms)

A Prayer for Love

"Come! Spirit of Love!

Penetrate and transform us

by the action of Your purifying life.

May Your constant, brooding love

bring forth in us more love

and all the graces and works of love.

Give us grace to remain still under its action,

and may that humble stillness be our prayer."

AMEN

Evelyn Underhill