Love them unconditionally. Consistently. In all things. Whatever you’re going through.
Focus on your responsibility to love, not on what you think others should be doing. The latter may lead you to feel wronged or offended and will take away from you being the best you can be.
No matter what you believe about Jesus of Nazareth, I’m sure you would agree that what he did was a great example of unconditional love. They nailed him to a cross and left him there to die and yet while on that cross he forgave them and asked God to forgive them as he prayed, Father, forgive them because they don’t know what they are doing. – Oh if I could learn this lesson.
We shouldn’t allow the other person’s actions to direct our thoughts and actions towards them. Most people don’t mean wrong when they do it.
Love people for who they are. Wonderfully created children of God. Loved by God. I know we often don’t live up to it. But that doesn’t take away from the fact that we are.
The more I grow the more I realize that I need to separate the person from their actions. And quite honestly I still have a long way to go in applying this to myself and others consistently.
Do you know that 90% of what we do, we do subconsciously, without thought or effort. During our formative years, we develop habits and beliefs which are recorded and stored in our subconscious mind and made available for recall at a moments notice. It’s fascinating.
For example, think about all the different things you had to master when you were learning to drive a car and then compare that to how effortlessly you drive now! You don’t need to even think about it.
Have you ever driven to your destination and on arrival wondered how you got there? The experienced driver doesn’t need to think about driving. The subconscious mind does it for them. It’s the same when it comes to brushing your teeth, putting on your shoes and your clothes and most of the tasks we do everyday. It’s scary. Most of what we do is done without conscious thought.
This is the same wether we’re talking about riding a bike or as it relates to our worldview, our deep seated habits, beliefs or convictions. We operate from them without even thinking about it. It’s all been programmed.
And what if these habits and beliefs are not based on truth? The ramification of this is amazing. Forgive them because they don’t know what they are doing.
We do have the power to choose our thoughts and the responsibility to reprogram our subconscious minds, but this is a long and difficult process. A journey that everyone could and should be taking.
But in the meantime recognize that a little love goes a long way! It strengthens and lifts people up. It values and adds value to people regardless of their performance, and it’s based on the truth of who and whose we are.
Your family resemblance is unmistakable, you are a child of God and I love you.
I’m right there with you
Robin Lewis
