Be Love

There are many ways we can BE in any given situation . We can be jealous, angry, annoyed, happy, selfish, kind, judgmental, and so on. The absolute, very best way to be is to BE LOVE.

What you notice about others is the same thing you notice about yourself. What is relevant and important to us are the things we think should be relevant and important to others. When we judge others, we are actually judging ourselves.  We often try to blame others for being hard to love. However, it’s not them, it’s you. You have a hard time loving them because you see things in them that you don’t love about yourself.

Decide right now what kind of person you want to be. Who do you want to be if someone gossips about you? Who do you want to be if your husband cheats on you.  Who do you want to be if someone decides they can’t stand you? Who do you want to be if a drunk driver kills your child? It doesn’t matter who we’re dealing with, what they did, or what they’re like. You get to be who you want to be. Do you want to be mean and ornery? or Do you want to be kind, loving, and compassionate?

Christ commanded us to love everyone, even our enemies. “For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye?” (Matthew 5:44 & 46). It’s easy to love those who love you back, but loving someone who has hurt you, or annoys you, takes commitment, and heavenly help. I love the story Neill Marriott tells about a relative who criticized her in front of her family over a  political disagreement. She explains that that night she knelt and hurried to explain to Heavenly Father how difficult this relative was! She went on and on until she heard herself say, “You probably want me to love her.” But her feelings were hurt and she didn’t want to love her. Then she had a new thought, “But You love her, Heavenly Father. Would You give me a portion of Your love for her -so I can love her too?”

I believe a portion of Heavenly Father’s love is always available for us to use. “Heavenly Father will help us love even those we may think are unlovable.”

Loving others will take practice. You will be terrible at first, but over time, you will get better and better.

Take some time today to think about and journal: What kind of wife, mother, sister, daughter, daughter-in-law, friend, ex-wife, neighbor, etc  you want to be? Don’t worry about everyone else and their behavior. Only worry about you. What thoughts would you think? (All your thoughts about others are optional) What beliefs would you need to have? What boundaries do you need to set? (Boundaries made out of love, not punishment, fear, or hate are okay).