Loving & Giving

"You can give without loving, but you cannot love without giving."

~Amy Carmichael

Perhaps that explains why a young lady of Ireland goes to India and founds an orphanage.

Loving & Grieving

Mary Neal, in her book, To Heaven and Back, tells of some sage advice offered to her while she was grieving the loss of her son:

"When you love with all that you have,
  you grieve with all that you are."

I find those words to be true.  Loving entails grieving because we have loved well, deeply.  As Jesus said to Mary who cried tears (Luke 7:38) and washed his feet ... "for she loved much."  (Luke 7:47)
The Bible describes her as a "sinner."  She may well have been a sinner, but I also see she was a griever.  Perhaps her grief was over her sin, or perhaps over losing someone or something she loved very deeply.  Whatever our grief, it pains us.  So let that remind you of something good:  You cared enough and you loved deeply.  

In the Name of Love

Singer and songwriter Carole King, was inspired by the death of a young man, Willie, as told by his Mother, Mary in To Heaven and Back.   She composed a song in his tribute:  In the Name of Love.
Listen to it and see if it inspires you of the cycle of life and the purpose of love.

Doing things in the spirit of love

"You will find as you look back upon your life

that the moments when you have really lived,

are the moments when you have done things 

in a spirit of love."

Henry Drummond

Choosing - Reacting

I'm reading Dr. Mary Neal's book, To Heaven and Back.  She describes an elevator operator in the hospital in which she worked.  She was impressed with her great attitude and one day simply asked her how she did it.  Here is how she writes it:  "She told me that her joy and strength came from the Lord.  She knew the only part of life she could control was her reaction to it, so she chose to react with love."

That's a good reminder for us to CHOOSE to REACT with LOVE.

Not too much...and Not weak

Dave Matthews sings 2 songs on his latest album, 'Away from the World', that have to do with love.

One song is 'Belly Belly Nice.'  He sings:  "Can't get too much love."
The other song is 'Mercy', where he sings:  "Love is not a whisper or a weakness.  No, love is strong."

I like the idea of not ever being able to get too much love; and that love is not weak, love is strong.
Ponder these ideas, or sing his songs!