Erin Pacheco 0:08
Welcome to Elmhurst CRC’s Daily Dose of the Word of God. It’s Friday, July 5, and Sunday is coming! I’m Erin Pacheco. It’s the season of green and growing things, our spiritual lives included! This Summer we are sitting at Jesus feet and listening to his parables: stories that shed meaning on our lives. This Sunday it’s the parable of the Good Samaritan, which for many of us is so familiar that it’s lost its impact. Let’s come back to the opening scene of this story – the conversation Jesus has with one of the religious teachers of his day. Here’s Luke 10:25-28:
Erin Pacheco 0:52
On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” “What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?” He answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” “You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.”
Erin Pacheco 1:24
It’s been said that “You are what you love.” Whatever captures your heart and your affections shapes who you become. If you love a sport, for example, it can take up a lot of space in your schedule and your conversations – and even your budget. Same goes for shopping, or traveling, or food, or friends, or art, or work, or spending time with family, or getting to relax. Our everyday choices and actions are shaped by some vision of the good life – some picture of a life filled with things we love. “You are what you love.” What do you love? What fills your thoughts, your time, your heart? Jesus, in his wisdom, says that the way to the good life is through loving God with everything we are –and loving our neighbor as ourself. It’s something we can all grow in. I wonder how making time for worship this week might help you learn to love God better, or love your neighbor better – or maybe both.
Erin Pacheco 2:45
Let’s pray. Holy God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, thank you for your great love for us. We love only because you first loved us. Help us know your love more deeply, love you more in return, and show your love to others. Amen.
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