We know the method God uses to fulfill His purpose is best defined as ‘love’… a love so great that He gave His only Son to bring us to Him. And love is the method He gives us to show the world who He is. “Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” (Ephesians 5:1-2)
I plan to be in Ecuador next week, so I probably won’t be able to write. Such trips cause me to ask God to teach me to love. I know I should request this every day, but when I find myself among the poor of another nation, I quickly remember my great need.
We will work again with Pastor Manuel and his family who demonstrate how to be humble servants of love among their own people. As we witness selfless love, we see the power and heart of Father God.
An eighteen-year-old girl from Albania left home in 1928 to pursue Heaven’s purposes. Her life-long journey resulted in demonstrating to the whole world God’s great love for the poor, the sick, and the dying. She called her group ‘Missionaries of Charity’ because she knew love is what the world needs.
These quotes from Mother Teresa help me remember God’s method:
“God loves you tenderly. What He gives you is not to be kept under lock and key, but to be shared. The more you save, the less you will be able to give. The less you have, the more you will know how to share. Let us ask God, when it comes time to ask Him for something, to help us to be generous.”
“I will never tire of repeating this: what the poor need most is not pity but love. They need to feel the respect for their human dignity, which is neither less nor different from the dignity of any other human being.”
“God pays attention to our love. We can work until we drop. We can work excessively. If what we do is not connected to love, however, our work is useless in God’s eyes.”
“Jesus announced which will be the final judgment of our lives: we will be judged according to love. Judged according to the love we have shown the poor, with whom God identifies: ‘You did it to Me.’” (Matthew 25:40)
“And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love.” I Corinthians 13:13
(“Mother Teresa in My Own Words,” by Mother Teresa, compiled by Jose Luis Gonzalez-Balado, ©1997 Gramercy Books)