Don't waste time bothering whether you "love" your neighbour; act as if you did. As soon as we do this we find one of the great secrets. When you are behaving as if you loved someone, you will presently come to love him. If you injure someone you dislike, you will find yourself disliking him more. If you do him a good turn, you will find yourself disliking him less. There is, indeed, one exception. If you do him a good turn, not to please God and obey the law of charity, but to show him what a fine forgiving chap you are, and to put him in your debt, and then sit down to wait for his "gratitude," you will probably be disappointed. (People aren't fools: they have a very quick eye for anything like showing off, or patronage.) But whenever we do good to another self, just because it is a self, made (like us) by God, and desiring its own happiness as we desire ours, we shall have learned to love it a little more or, at least, to dislike it less.
-- C. S. Lewis, Christian Behaviour
3 comments:
It is hard sometimes to truly love your (actually next door) neighbor, ours can be a REAL jerk sometimes, but I try, not for him, but for his daughter and my family. I guess I need to try and be the better person.
Sometime I wonder where I get these REALLY mean spirited thoughts from, I need to pray a little harder at church (and home) for God to help me through them. I don't like the feeling of bitterness or being consumed with negative thoughts.
Sandy
Sandy,
You're right about how hard it is sometimes to love those around us! But I have found in choosing to ACT as though I love difficult people, the LORD has often allowed the feeling to follow the obedience. This isn't always the case - sometimes we might never FEEL love for others, but we're to act in kindness despite our feelings (for their good as well as our's). That's why love is a verb, something we CHOOSE to act out. Unfortunately, society portrays the main idea of love as being in our feelings which is dangerous because you and I both know how often we feel unloving towards others! Your mean-spirited thoughts come from the same place as everyone else's - our true hearts. That's why we're all in such great need of a Savior. Training yourself to think and act based on God's truth versus how we may feel is what helps us to grow and mature in Him.
Blessings on your day!
Thank you Julia, I needed this today.
Have a great weekend!
Sandy
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