THE ACTIVE  POWER OF LOVE

For centuries that simple four letter word has been the subject of poets, writers, theologians and philosophers. These days we are bombarded with images of “love” created by movies, the media and “reality” tv shows. But discussing love, writing about love, even thinking about love is not the same as the action of love. Love must be a conscious choice that we make each and every day: love of God, love of others, love of self … love that extends beyond the needs of our egos … love that sustains our planet. Love is not the thrill of “falling” in love, of finally finding happiness when we meet that one and only person who fulfills us. There is no one and only person designed to fulfill us, to give us love, to teach us the value of love. Instead, it is necessary for us to “fall” in love with the very act of loving itself.

When we think of love, when we speak of it, we think of our hearts. And rightly so because our hearts are the relative center of our bodies and love needs to be the real center of our lives. And, in our bodies, not far below our heart is our stomach. The two appear to be intricately connected, for how often do we speak of feeling something in our gut? Or what of the connection between feelings of love and butterflies in our stomach as in romantic love? Coincidence? I don’t think so. We often determine who it feels safe to love, comfortable to love or difficult to love by what we feel in our “gut”. How complicated it can be to draw a clear line between the feelings we have and our pit-of-the-stomach reason for those feelings.

What I have discovered is that sometimes those who feel the most uncomfortable to love are the very teachers of what LOVE means in our lives. After all, it is easy to love those who are like minded, easygoing and who do not challenge us. But what amazing gifts there are to be found in the tremendous power of love when shown towards those we fear, do not understand, or judge as completely different from us. That is when love is stretched beyond its comfort zone.

And beyond our comfort zone is where God created us to be and to thrive and to grow. If we never grow comfortable with anything beyond our ken, we lose out on the greatest opportunity of our lives to realize the true power of love. Send it to that person who cuts you off in traffic, or to that neighbor upstairs whose dog drives you crazy. This kind of love finds its roots in compassion  -  feeling with and for another. If the world is ever to advance beyond its current values and behaviors, our comfort zone has to be expanded to include in our circle of dear and blessed ones those whom we fear, disagree with and who may feel uncomfortable to be around.

Love of those who delight us is certainly a blessing from God. Yet, the love of someone who feels more like the Grinch than Mother Teresa has, perhaps, the greater power to make us better and more compassionate human beings. Challenges make us think. Challenge promotes growth. Challenge, when met with love and tolerance, develops the Christ presence within us. Loving beyond what feels reasonable is the greatest power on earth, the antidote to so many personal and social “illnesses”.

There is absolutely nothing that unconditional love will not conquer, perhaps not right this moment as we would like it to, but in the long run of human existence. Jesus preached and lived love, as did so many other great religious leaders throughout history. The biggest difference between Jesus, those others and us? The willingness to love beyond our comfort zone, love beyond reason, love beyond controversy, love that conquers even death. There is no more effective response to any and all activity/violence/conflict that we are exposed to day to day in our personal lives and in the news than radical love beyond our comfort zone. Every act, no matter how heinous, must be met with forgiveness and a resounding echo of “Love, sweet love, not just for some but for everyone” including and especially ourselves. For we cannot give away that which we do not possess. We love ourselves as God loves us. We are patient and kind with ourselves. We take time each day in Silence with God … giving thanks, in Love, in Peace and in  Joy. We set limits and honor our boundaries. Above all, when in doubt of our own worth, we Love Beyond Reason.