And the second is like, namelythis, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these. – Mark 12:31
How do you want them to love you? What amazing things are you hoping will happen to you and for you?
Write them down…in detail.
And then, go and do those things to yourself.
Yes. You.
Religion likes to preach against the dangers of being “selfish” (a word that never appears in the KJV), because it’s a powerful way to manipulate you into conforming and complying.
“How could you be so selfish?”
“Think of the poor and starving in Africa?”
Attempts to fill you up with guilt and shame in order to get something from you.
But after first loving God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength (Mark 12:30), the next person on the list…is you.
God wants you to be kind, loving, considerate, merciful, friendly, encouraging and favourable to yourself BEFORE you try and be those towards others.
He wants you to bless yourself BEFORE you try to bless others.
He wants you to be brutally honest with yourself BEFORE you try to be brutally honest with others.
He wants you to study the Word to feed yourself BEFORE you think about serving it to others in a sermon or a talk.
He wants you to share out of the overflow of your relationship with God.
Here’s the order:
- You give yourself to God,
- God gives Himself to you,
- You receive and enjoy what He gives you
- You give what you have to others (aka your neighbour)
You can’t give what you don’t have.
So dare to take time to give yourself to God (aka “wasting” time in fellowship with Him through the Word, prayer and worship).
Then dare to bless yourself with what God gives you. Soak it up, eat it, revel in it, and enjoy it fully.
And guess what?
Because you’ve dared to bless yourself with what God’s given you, the natural response will be for you to share it with others…and for others to ask you what you’ve got.
You don’t need to force it or sign up for the Bible Bashers Brigade… ringing on doorbell and cludgeoning unsuspecting householders with your tracts and doctrine.
Instead, take time to love God. Take time to love yourself with the love you’ve received from God. And then you’ll find it impossible to restrain yourself from giving what you have to those around you.
And when you’re loving us from that state of being…we’ll be more than eager to receive what you’re offering.