“You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
There is no other commandment greater than these.”
We dont. Nope. It is hardest to love your neighbor … we find it annoying when their dogs bark incessantly at rainstorms or they repeatedly borrow stuff they can purchase, its even more annoying when they assume their opinion is sought on any and everything. Yes neighbors are not the most favourite people to any of us. My own parents ( despite being so religious and loving ) do not talk to the old lady next door and will enumerate a string of reasons not to.Why go further?! I have been having a major issue with my own brother when we shared an apartment together last year for a few months.
Yes, no one is perfect.. no one likes being interfered with or being constantly corrected or watched. We have been so set in our system of living and ways that any event deviating from our path seems such a nuisance. Be it a family member, the neighbor or the car ahead of you in traffic or worse a co worker who just seems to need a leave of absence when you want one!
That is where commandment one plays a bigger role.
“The first is this:
Hear, O Israel!
The Lord our God is Lord alone!
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart,
with all your soul, with all your mind,
and with all your strength.
We put so much emphasis on a daily basis on what we want from life, what we need to achieve in our careers or what we love to do or eat or behave like that there is no room for God in our heart, soul or mind! Every person on the planet is trying to make his ends meet and please him / herself with the resultant outcome. No one has the time or energy to take a moment to remember God!!
Often I read that love begins with self but I always remember my high school science teacher telling us about
JOY—
JESUS
OTHERS
YOU
Prayer: Thank you Jesus for this beautiful day !! Praise you Lord for your mercy and love. Help me to keep you as the centre of my life now and forever ! Enable me to open my heart and love the difficult one.
Amen
