Beloved
The most important identity we have is our identity in Christ. We are beloved children of God. Our lives mean something. We are part of God’s plan which is much greater than ourselves. We cannot fully understand how we have impacted the world around us until God shows us when we join Him in Heaven.
People know when they are loved and when they are not loved. When we are loved and cared for, we want to love and care for others. The greatest gift we can give is love. What we do with our lives, how we choose to live, makes a difference. We are called to love.
The verse that dispels this truth so well is Matthew 22: 35-40. I love this verse because it challenges us to really ask ourselves how do I love? Whom do I love the most?
“And one of them, a doctor of the law, asked him, tempting him: Master, which is the greatest commandment in the law? Jesus said to him: Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with thy whole heart, and with thy whole soul, and with thy whole mind. This is the greatest and the first commandment. And the second is like to this: Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. On these two commandments dependeth the whole law and the prophets.” (Matthew 22: 35-40).
Jesus tells us that these two commandments are the foundation of everything. Love is the foundation of life. God is love and He lives within us. We are created in His image. We have a well of love within us to share with the world, a love that goes beyond our human capabilities. A love that surpasses all things because it is the source of love itself that lives within us.
Due to original sin, we have a natural tendency to move away from love and are attracted to sin. Sin is the opposite of love. We cannot settle for what satan wants to give us. God has told us we can overcome sin. It can be challenging at times but St. Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 10:13 that we will not be tried beyond our strength.
“ No trial has come to you but what is human. God is faithful and will not let you be tried beyond your strength; but with the trial he will also provide a way out, so that you may be able to bear it.”
When we are tried and we are finding it difficult to love, all we need to do is turn our gaze to our Lord. He sees our struggles and wants us to depend on Him. He wants us to come to Him in our hour of need and ask for the grace to conquer sin.
Psalm 34:17 tells us this truth, “When the righteous cry for help, the LORD hears and delivers them out of all their troubles.”
He hears our cries for help and will deliver us out of our troubles. We are not walking alone gritting our teeth and bearing it. This is not what our Lord wants for us. He wants us to have life and have it fully in and through Him.
We are walking as a child of the most high God who loves us and strengthens us. Our identity is in and through our good father in Heaven who loves us unconditionally. It is through our father that we can love as He loves us.