I spent the entirety of 2013 trying to learn what it meant to truly love... love myself, love others, and love God. Anyone who has known me for a while might have been surprised. I'm the kind of person that doesn't go a day (much less two hours) without saying "I love you." I had always believed I had love figured out. This past year proved to me how very wrong I was. But, it was the greatest and most valuable lesson I've ever learned.
I'm sure we are all fairly familiar with some version of the quote by St. Thomas Aquinas, "To love is to will the good of another." When we hear this quote, it is easy for us to assume this is the way we love those closest to us. However, willing the good of someone, and actually dying to yourself in order that they may achieve it are two very different things. Authentic love is not complete without both parts. I begged God to challenge me this year - to give me the opportunity to exemplify authentic love in its most raw form. He did not disappoint.
Love is not easy. True and genuine love is filled with times where it's anything but easy. In those moments where love becomes challenging, painful, and even strenuous, our mere humanity is not enough to hold us up. As Dr. Edward Sri states, "Love requires virtue." If you are not continually working toward becoming a more virtuous person, achieving this level of love is impossible. The difficulty of it will break you. We need God all the time, but especially in those moments. Moments like these require extreme levels of chastity, temperance, charity, diligence, patience, kindness, and humility. Genuine love challenges you to return to the person God made you to be - a reflection of His goodness. This is no easy task. It is an uphill battle against the effects of sin that are so prevalent in our world - especially apathy, a general lack of interest in the battle at hand.
Love requires sacrifice. We were created out of love, and for love. Therefore, this sacrificial behavior should be what guides our actions on a daily basis. Are you the kind of person who lays down your life consistently, even in the small things? Honest self sacrifice should be evident in all your relationships - not just in a select few. The number of times that I've heard people say things like, "When I'm in a relationship, I am so attentive to my boyfriend's/girlfriend's needs" is appalling. If you honestly believe this about yourself, this is a red flag. Our actions of self sacrifice should never be conditional.
Once again, as Dr. Sri says, "The way you practice is the way you're going to play the game." For most of us, this is our practice time. College is filled with years of being young, free, and unattached. If we cannot practice love in its most raw and true form now, we will not be able to years from now in our marriages and workplaces.
If you're living ruled by a watered down version of love, ask God to help you grow. Ask Him to flood you with the graces necessary that you may cultivate the seven virtues in your heart. This will change your life, in the most wonderful of ways. Make 2014 life changing.
Love is not easy. True and genuine love is filled with times where it's anything but easy. In those moments where love becomes challenging, painful, and even strenuous, our mere humanity is not enough to hold us up. As Dr. Edward Sri states, "Love requires virtue." If you are not continually working toward becoming a more virtuous person, achieving this level of love is impossible. The difficulty of it will break you. We need God all the time, but especially in those moments. Moments like these require extreme levels of chastity, temperance, charity, diligence, patience, kindness, and humility. Genuine love challenges you to return to the person God made you to be - a reflection of His goodness. This is no easy task. It is an uphill battle against the effects of sin that are so prevalent in our world - especially apathy, a general lack of interest in the battle at hand.
Love requires sacrifice. We were created out of love, and for love. Therefore, this sacrificial behavior should be what guides our actions on a daily basis. Are you the kind of person who lays down your life consistently, even in the small things? Honest self sacrifice should be evident in all your relationships - not just in a select few. The number of times that I've heard people say things like, "When I'm in a relationship, I am so attentive to my boyfriend's/girlfriend's needs" is appalling. If you honestly believe this about yourself, this is a red flag. Our actions of self sacrifice should never be conditional.
Once again, as Dr. Sri says, "The way you practice is the way you're going to play the game." For most of us, this is our practice time. College is filled with years of being young, free, and unattached. If we cannot practice love in its most raw and true form now, we will not be able to years from now in our marriages and workplaces.
If you're living ruled by a watered down version of love, ask God to help you grow. Ask Him to flood you with the graces necessary that you may cultivate the seven virtues in your heart. This will change your life, in the most wonderful of ways. Make 2014 life changing.
St. Therese of Lisieux, pray for us.
