Obedience

Love and Action.

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My four year old son is very sweet. He can be a bit sour too, but very often he is super sweet. Regularly, he will stop whatever he is doing, turn towards my wife or I and just blurt out, “Mommy, I love you. Daddy, I love you.” He really means it. 

What is tough is when he does this and then his very next act is one of rebellion or mischief. He will shower us with words of love, but then disobey us with his actions. 

In the gospel this Sunday Jesus says, “Whoever loves me will keep my word.” I think Jesus is demonstrating a reality to this life. To really love someone is more than just words. To love someone is more than a feeling or a sentiment. Love isn’t just black and white. We can love well or love poorly. We can love to a greater degree and to a lesser degree. 

When my son says he loves me, but then blatantly and purposefully disobeys me, he is just being a normal four year old. What is it when I act this way towards God?

I tell God I love him all the time. I pray using words of adoration. I say all the right things. Then I turn around disobey God. Maybe you do this too. 

Love is more than words. Love is an action. If we are going to love God, we must, not only say the words, but do the deeds. We don’t earn God’s love, but if we really do love God, then we must act like it. Otherwise, I think we have to examine how genuine our love is. In other words, if I say I love God, but I don’t act like I do, do I? 

The growth mindset version of that same question might be a little different. If we want to love God well, how can our actions reflect our desire. In other words, how can our behavior more perfectly demonstrate what we believe.

Jesus himself said that the way that will show our love for him is by doing what he says. Obedience, no natural rebel’s favorite word, is one way to love well. Do you love God? Do you do what he says? If you answered Yes and then No, you have something to work on, like the rest of us. 

Live It: Take 5 minutes this weekend to think about your 3 highest values. What are the animating beliefs by which you live your life. Now ask someone else in your life to write 3 highest values based only on what they can observe from your life. Do they match up?

Sunday Readings for May 22, 2022.

How many times…

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March 5th Sunday Readings.

“How many times do I have to ask you bring your clothes basket upstairs?” I uttered in is-that-not-brilliant-i-think-it-s-brilliant-hv4hw7-clipartfrustration. It finally happened. I realized I was becoming my mother.

Which honestly isn’t a bad thing, my mom is great. As my kids have gotten older, I feel like I understand my parents better and better. It’s like I understand why they said what they said. More than that, I understand something I really didn’t understand as a young person –

Obedience is a form of Love.

In the second reading, Paul outlines this way of thinking about Jesus as the one who, when Adam was disobedient, was totally obedient to the Father. If Adam disobeys God, it is Jesus who redeems through total obedience. If Adam’s disobedience caused a separation between man and God, then Jesus’ obedience repaired that rift. If Adam’s act brought death, Jesus’ obedience brings life.

I don’t know about you, but I don’t usually value obedience. Maybe it is that us Americans seem to enjoy a rebel. Maybe it’s just that I rather like being in control and obeying someone else means that I have to give up that control. Whatever the case, I rarely have thought well of simple obedience.

Yet Jesus shows us that one way to love, and to love well, is to obey the virtuous request of those who love us. Obviously, I’m not suggesting we just do whatever someone else tells us. But when asked, by someone with total care and love for us, obedience is a way to love.

How can I love my spouse? How can I love my parents? How can we love God? Obedience.

Live It:
How do we know what God is telling us? Read scripture. Try reading this Sunday’s readings by clicking here.
or if your my kids, take your baskets upstairs. 😉

The Good Word for Sunday Sept 28

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For the complete Sunday readings click here.

the-princess-bride_image

One of my favorite movies of all time is The Princess Bride. The movie is an old-fashioned fairytale told by a grandfather to his sick grandson. In the story a young woman named Buttercup, who is engaged to a prince, is kidnapped to start a war. Her childhood love, Westley, returns, from a life as a pirate king, to save her and prevent a war. If you haven’t seen it, seriously, watch it tonight – great for the whole family.

At the beginning of the film Buttercup asks Westley to serve her in a variety, and often unnecessary, ways. Westley’s response is always, “As you wish.” He is without question, obedient to her request. This total obedience and complete surrender of will eventually wins the heart of Buttercup and she falls in love with Westley.

We don’t often think of it, but obedience is an act of love.

To do what is asked is like saying, “Your desire is more important than mine.” To be obedient takes a great deal of trust, sacrifice, and love. When Westley said, “As you wish.” He was really saying, “I love you.” (Watch this video to see the phrase in action.)

There has been no greater act of obedience and of love, then Jesus Christ giving his life on the cross. Jesus did it out of love for God the Father and for us. Jesus was obedient even though he asked for the cup to pass. Our second reading explains this so well when it says, “Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God something to be grasped. Rather, he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, coming in human likeness; and found human in appearance, he humbled himself, becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross” (Phil 2).

Every Mass and every time we pray the Our Father, we pray the words, “Thy will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven.” We are literally praying for God’s will to be done not ours. We are actually saying to God, “As you wish.”

Live it:
Take a Post-It note and write the phrase, “God – As You wish.” And stick it on your bathroom mirror. Every time you see it, pray the phrase and ask God to give you the grace to live it out.