Love Made New

Moses once said to the Israelites, “I place before you life and death, blessing and curse. Choose life so that you and your children will live. And love God, your God, listening obediently to him, firmly embracing him” (Deuteronomy 30:19-20).

In choosing to do the things that foster life for ourselves and others, such as sharing our abundant resources with the poor and living in a spirit of gratitude, forgiveness, and mercy, we are listening to and embracing God.

Consider Jesus’ parable of the prodigal son. The father in the story (who is a stand-in for God) could have been bitter when his younger son (representing each of us) took his precious inheritance and squandered it in dissolute living. Yet every day, the father chose to keep watch for his son so he could embrace him if he returned.

Every day, God makes the choice to love us, even when we act selfishly out of greed, pride, and fear. Every day, God forgives us and offers us mercy. And God calls us to do the same (“Love one another as I have loved you”).

Ursula K. Le Guin wrote, “Love doesn’t just sit there, like a stone; it has to be made, like bread, remade all the time, made new.” Every day, we are refreshed by the Bread of Life who chooses over and over again to love us. Every day, out of gratitude and obedience, may we extend that same love and mercy to others.