"I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and your joy might be complete. This is my commandment: love one another as I love you."
John 15:11-12
We heard a wonderful homily for this Gospel over the weekend and it is still sticking with me. The priest explained how our joy and our love for others are completely intertwined. If we feel less joy down deep, maybe we should take a good look at how we are loving others. If we are loving well, that joy is there--down in hearts (where? oh sorry! That was last week). Our joy and how we love others are woven together...beautiful! He gave us three "challenges" or questions to ask ourselves in prayer (I love lessons in threes!) First, are we friends with Jesus or does Jesus seem to be a stranger? Second, how are we on the joy scale? Do we feel joyful? Are we loving others well? And, finally, my favorite: is there someone God loves that we do not love--yet? Who challenges us to love? Who are the "hard ones" we struggle to love in our lives? God loves them. Can we? These are such great questions for us to pray with and really ponder as we embark on another work week. Blessings, abundant, as we forge ahead! Love, heidi
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