Galatians 5:22-23

” But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control. There is no law against these things.”

So… shall I  write about God’s love in us with Paul’s concept of fruit ?  Nope. It’s been done.
Instead, God has lit a flickering light down a different path.  Join me.

Have you ever tried to define love? 
It’s nearly as hard as defining God. Makes sense when you grasp the fact that God is love.
Not just that God loves, independently of who he is… He can’t, because Love; pure love, & God is one in the same. 
Try anyway…define love. 

I tried.  Poems, song lyrics, scripture; they all crossed my mind. 
But trying to do so with my own thoughts, I drew a blank. That’s scary. 
I prayed and asked God to speak of His love to me, and of my love for others. 
Soon, I came across a quote from John Muir Law. 
” A useful way to define love is sustained compassionate attention. 
Paying sincere attention to, and developing a rich curiosity about others helps us to be kind.”
 Sustained~ Compassionate ~Attention~ Sincere Attention~Rich curiosity about OTHERS! 

I actually swooned inside when I thought of this kind of relationship. This is what I long to give & receive. 
But there’s a problem…ME. 
God help me to see the truth in this. 
Help us to see the love that You have produced in Your body of believers .
When God sent His Spirit to live in us, He was sending His Love to live in us.
 As we embrace the fact that Love is God, from God, to reconcile us to God; 
we  can begin to allow it to produce a sincere love in us for others as well.

What did you think of when you read this quote by John Muir Law?
I saw the many times I half listened to someone as I looked at my cell phone, or planned a response I’d give once they were done.
How many excited smiles have I missed while Harvey related his thoughts to me?
How many lines of concern have creased my husband’s brow as he shared his day with me,
only to be met with a grunt of acknowledgment instead of a true interest?
I think that’s why this quote struck my heart so hard. It revealed my lackluster love. 

Real love is produced in us by God, but it takes our full cooperation. We need to be invested in it’s harvest just as Jesus is invested in us.
So, the next time Harvey told me a story, I stared at his face. I saw his eyes glimmer with excitement, his breath quicken, his body bounce up and down as he re~lived his tale. I asked sincere questions that filled him with pure joy. At that moment…He knew he was loved, and so did I.

Remember…Sustained~ Compassionate ~Attention ~Sincere Attention~Rich curiosity about OTHERS! 
 Let’s all embrace this as we love others the way Jesus loves us.

~Sonya Palumbo