Advocating and being a part of change for the better is possibly one of the most thrilling things one can be part of. In this day and age with so much daily devastation, and seemingly endless poverty and starvation, advocating change through our connection to God’s love and the soundness of Christ’s message, is something that gives one hope for the future and connects us to our core meaning in life.
I have recently been reflecting on how I, and other fellow Christians, discover what our role is to engage in positive change and take action. What I discovered in my humble reflection was surprising simple.
I often reflect back to when I was a vocal, passionate, idealistic, and strong-willed 20 year old wanting to shout the word of the Lord from the rooftops— and then to my current (more subdued) life, with new responsibilities and priorities. Being a little bit older, and perhaps a little bit wiser (albeit less spontaneous I suppose), I still want to take action, participate, and orchestrate as much as I can through spreading the word of the Lord; advocating for change that is aligned to God’s will; and from my blessed position of sufficient comfort, help those that are less fortunate. I guess my focus now is to be the change you wish to see in the world (Matthew 20:28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.).
While reflecting on all of this, I happened to drive past one of the churches in my town and there written simply in big bold writing, were the words “God is Love." The simple power of this message affected me instantly and realigned me to our purpose. As always God can see so clearly all that blinds us befuddled humans. It has been my experience that when I start to complicate or overanalyze things, the answer when it appears is always very simple.
As a child my two favorite versus from the bible were:
1 John 4:8 (NIV) - Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.
1 John 4:16b (NIV) God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.
Even though I couldn’t exactly understand back then why God is love, I nevertheless knew it was true. God, from what I learned in Scripture class, was pure. And everything God did was from a base of love. I remember sitting in my Nan’s kitchen, and as she sang softly the sun shone through the window in this beautiful way and I said to her “Nan, is that God?” She answered, “God’s love is everywhere. When you love, that is God living through you”.
The truth of the words “ God is Love” have endured to become like a beacon of our troubled world – so powerful are the words – for centuries. In fact I came across an article that said “selflessness is the underlying theme of existence. It’s the glue that holds the world together and what we really mean by the term ‘love’. Indeed, the old Christian word for love was ‘caritas,' which means charity or selflessness … God is love ... ‘God’ is Integrative Meaning, which is everywhere!"
And so I have come back to basics. In reflecting on how I can make a positive change in God’s world, I was reminded of the unconditional love God gave that changed the world. I have always been told when you need some direction, going back to the pure source you will find the guidance you are seeking.
This simpleness of the message, "God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him" reminded me that from wherever you are, you can always be a force for good. Everything opens up from there.
Samara Wilson is a member of the National Association of Social Workers and an avid member of many community and church groups in her area. Through her work and through studing Public International Law, Samara stays passionate to her desire to educate about the social injustice plaguing our planet.
Door photo, Elena Yakusheva / Shutterstock.com
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