Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. 1 John 4:20
“Love of God is the first to be commanded, but love of neighbor is the first to be put into practice… Since you do not yet see God, you merit the vision of God by loving your neighbor. By loving your neighbor you prepare your eye to see God… In loving your neighbor and caring for him you are on a journey. Where are you traveling if not to the Lord God, to Him whom we should love with our whole heart, our whole soul, our whole mind? We have not yet reached His presence, but we have our neighbor at our side. Support, then, this companion of your pilgrimage if you want to come unto the presence of the One with whom you desire to remain forever.”
Augustine of Hippo (354-430) in John as recounted Milton Walsh in Witness of the Saints: Patristic Readings in the Liturgy of the Hours (San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 2012) 556.
As I think about today’s Scripture, and these words from Augustine coming off my birthday yesterday, it gives me a renewed sense of focus for my next year.
Support the companions of your pilgrimage.
Think of the implications of this. All of us, whether we admit it or not, are simply sojourners traveling through life for a short time. While will we do with the time given to us.
Jesus wants us to show our love for God by showing love to our neighbor.
Since you are reading this, you (along with me) have not yet reached the presence of God so there is still time to support our neighbor. So, what do we get to do? Support fellow sojourners.
In plain terms, the greatest commandment, as it is often described, to love our neighbor as ourself says this: If you want to spend eternity with God, then show support the companions of your pilgrimage.
I want to thank everyone for their love and encouragement on my birthday.
I also appreciate those who showed support by giving to GTP. The need is $199,158 by 31 December 2023. Click here to give. Again, if we hit the mark, it positions GTP to activate a 5-year, $1.25 million capacity building grant.