Do you ever have times when you feel like the same theme meets you at every turn? Times when you read something about generosity, for example, and then a friend brings up a conversation about it the next day and then you see a news story on the topic that night and then you go to church and hear a sermon about it?
That happened to me the other week with the idea of loving others better. I'd spent some time with missionaries we support and was so moved by the needs they'll be addressing in Bundibugyo, Uganda. Then, the next week, my dear friends took a huge step forward in the process of adopting their daughter from China and my heart soared. The next week, I read on another blog about one author's trip to Ethiopia with Food for the Hungry. And on and on.
My initial reaction to all of this was, I want to do more! Let's support a child through Food for the Hungry! Let's help get clean water in Uganda! Let's give more! Let's do big things!
But then. I realized that more isn't always better. It's good, of course, but not always better. I had to ask myself: how well am I loving the people and ministries I'm currently a part of? Beyond financial contributions and occasional prayers, I'm not doing much. That's not to minimize things like money and prayers, but a check is pretty impersonal, and, in many cases (thanks to automatic withdrawal), it doesn't even take thought. I was really only loving others in ways that were convenient to me, and I'm not sure how loving that is.
Rather than do more, I want to love better. I may not be able clean all the water in Uganda, but I can show love in other ways. I can write friends and missionaries letters or emails as encouragement. I can remember birthdays. We can plan trips around where people we love live. We can put pictures of them up in our home as a reminder to think about and pray for them. We can get involved locally if we aren't able to globally. I can knock on my new neighbor's door and bring her a loaf of my homemade bread. Instead of casting a wide but shallow net, we want to go deep, even if that means serving in seemingly smaller ways.
It's a different, braver way to love. It means not getting acclaim and probably shouldering more mess in others' lives (and sharing my own). It means thinking of myself less and making practical changes to think of others more. It won't be easy, but I'm excited about how this deeper, more intentional love will transform relationships. It's the great paradox of love: the more we give to others, the more joy we feel ourselves. And I say, bring on the joy!
That happened to me the other week with the idea of loving others better. I'd spent some time with missionaries we support and was so moved by the needs they'll be addressing in Bundibugyo, Uganda. Then, the next week, my dear friends took a huge step forward in the process of adopting their daughter from China and my heart soared. The next week, I read on another blog about one author's trip to Ethiopia with Food for the Hungry. And on and on.
My initial reaction to all of this was, I want to do more! Let's support a child through Food for the Hungry! Let's help get clean water in Uganda! Let's give more! Let's do big things!
But then. I realized that more isn't always better. It's good, of course, but not always better. I had to ask myself: how well am I loving the people and ministries I'm currently a part of? Beyond financial contributions and occasional prayers, I'm not doing much. That's not to minimize things like money and prayers, but a check is pretty impersonal, and, in many cases (thanks to automatic withdrawal), it doesn't even take thought. I was really only loving others in ways that were convenient to me, and I'm not sure how loving that is.
Rather than do more, I want to love better. I may not be able clean all the water in Uganda, but I can show love in other ways. I can write friends and missionaries letters or emails as encouragement. I can remember birthdays. We can plan trips around where people we love live. We can put pictures of them up in our home as a reminder to think about and pray for them. We can get involved locally if we aren't able to globally. I can knock on my new neighbor's door and bring her a loaf of my homemade bread. Instead of casting a wide but shallow net, we want to go deep, even if that means serving in seemingly smaller ways.
It's a different, braver way to love. It means not getting acclaim and probably shouldering more mess in others' lives (and sharing my own). It means thinking of myself less and making practical changes to think of others more. It won't be easy, but I'm excited about how this deeper, more intentional love will transform relationships. It's the great paradox of love: the more we give to others, the more joy we feel ourselves. And I say, bring on the joy!
5 comments:
This is so true. Thanks for the reminder that loving better is more important than doing more.
You are so right. Sometimes we look to how we can love BIG instead of how to love better. When once we learn how to love better, our love can then be transformed into something bigger than we ever could have imagined. It's the perfect picture of being members of the body of Christ and looking to Jesus as an example of what perfect love really looks like. (Sorry for the Jesus Juke...it just happens sometimes. ;))
I couldn't agree more, Ashley! All of this points back to Jesus.
I like these thoughts. And I am loving getting involved at my church, being local. This is something to think on.
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