Love Your Neighbor As Yourself

I am feeling really down today.  No particular reason I can put my finger on just a not-so-good day.

Recently I started reading a blog again that I used to follow closely.  And have remembered why I quit reading it.  I start reading the comments and get all caught up in the 'hate' commenter's she has.  And it gets my blood pressure up!  And then I discovered the blog that is dedicated to discussing her and tearing her apart.  Then I checked out another well-read blog and found she has a site of 'haters' too.  It gets me down. 

On the way home today a vehicle went tearing around me.  They got slowed down by the next vehicle who was going between 55 and 60.  Not too slow by any means.  When they were finally able to pass they made an obscene gesture out the window to the other driver.

It got me down.

This world is so depraved!

And it's supposed to be the month of love.

(Hearts made by my girls...)

Where is brotherly love?  Where is courtesy?  Where is patience?  Where is kindness?

(...and hung on the tree we used for our Christmas tree.)

Why do we all think of ourselves and what WE have going on over everyone else? 

Why are we so quick to say that the lady over on that blog is lying?  Have we walked in her shoes?

Why do we think WE have all the answers and could certainly straighten out everyone else if they would just listen to what we tell them????

Because of sin.  This world is a fallen world.  A depraved world.  A dark world.  A lost world. 

Let's stand up and LOVE OUR NEIGHBORS!   Let's shine a light of LOVE, Christ's LOVE, everywhere we go, to everyone we meet.  Because who is our neighbor??  Everyone we come in contact with.

Love them as Christ loves them.  Love them as we would love ourselves.  That gets pretty sobering if you sit and ponder it a bit.

Love the people who show hatred for the bloggers I enjoy reading.  Love the guy who doesn't know any better on the highway.  Love the lady in the check-out lane who yells at her kids because she is so overwrought.  (they were cuties but had WAY too much energy)  Love the impatient, love the unkind, love the seemingly unlovable.  It's only possible with Jesus' love in us.

And to bring it even closer home - love your teenager when she tells you she thinks you are stupid, love the 8 year old when she throws a fit and cannot be reasoned with, love the 6 year old when she refused to eat the food you fix.  Be patient.  Be loving.  Be kind.  Be Christ-like.

"Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins."      1Peter 4:8

                                                                 

What are your thoughts on Loving your neighbor???