Love is Probably the Answer
Maybe that’s something we can all agree on?
I only have about 20 minutes to write this post because I’ve wasted all my other free moments this week worrying, and scrolling, and thinking, and reading other people’s opinions, and crying, and praying, and scrolling some more.
Truthfully, I haven’t been able to pick up my phone lately without a surge of anxiety running through my chest.
I haven’t been able to play with my girls or make our lunches or get dressed without thinking about all the awful things going on around us. I haven’t gone 5 minutes without asking big questions about politics and theology and humanity.
How did we get to this point?
Where do we go from here?
Where is God in all of it (if He’s even here at all)?
And I don’t know what to do about it all—it’s too much for me to handle. Too difficult for me to fix. Too complex for me to mentally sort out.
Generally, I don’t have any answers.
But I’ve noticed there’s one thing that at least those of us who are seeking Good can agree on: love is always a good answer.
We may disagree about the source of that love or the definition of love or how exactly we show it.
But for most of us, even though we don’t know much for certain, we know there’s something powerful about love. It’s almost automatic; we feel it in our souls: love must be at least part of the answer.
(I know, sounds trite. Like the predictable ending of every Disney movie. But stick with me, because I don’t think it is. I think there might be a reason why our most beloved stories have this same thread running through them.)
Of course like I said, in our cultural context, the definition of love varies.
So let me use some words from one of my favorite teachers of all time to clarify what I’m talking about when I say “love:”
“Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”
Love in this context isn’t about infatuation, or romantic attraction, or personal fulfillment, or even a strong feeling.
Love is seeking the good of the people around you. It’s putting others’ needs ahead of your own.
It’s about loving the people around you as much as you love yourself—championing their dreams as much as you chase yours; taking care of them just as well as you take care of yourself; seeking to understand and honor their perspectives just as seriously as you take yours; and wanting justice, peace, and joy in their lives just as much as you want it for your life.
Can we all agree that more of this kind of love would change the world?
So here’s a simple charge for you this week, if you feel overwhelmed by the weight of the world and don’t know what to do:
follow Love.
Every morning when you wake up, before you open your phone or check your to-do list or start your morning routine, ask this simple question:
“What does Love require of me today?”
(Not
“What’s the news telling me to worry about today?”
Or “What’s that influencer convincing me to do today?”
Or “What do my friends expect me to do today?”)
But, in other words, “How can I follow Love today?”
And as you go throughout your day, keep your eyes peeled for the answer.
You might feel compelled to check in on a friend you haven’t talked to in a while, or take action on a certain political issue, or just spend five extra minutes undistracted, face-to-face with your people.
“What does Love require of me today?”
And if you want to get really crazy, don’t just imagine you’re asking that question to yourself.
Ask it as a prayer.
(Yes, even if you don’t know who or what you’re praying to.)
Pray it in your soul as if Someone who fully embodies the most beautiful concept of Love you can think of is listening.
Ask this simple question as if you’re going to get an answer in response.
Because maybe, you might.
And maybe following love will lead you to Love Himself.
Standing with you in love (not anger, fear, or hate),
Sarah