BE LOVE

The first commandment is to love God.

If we are to love Him, we must first learn about him and grow to know him. This is how a relationship begins.

So, who is God? He is the creator of our world, Alpha & Omega, the beginning and the end. He is omnipotent (which means all-powerful) and omniscient (which means all-knowing). So, basically, he is the ultimate “been there, done that” being. There is nothing beyond his ability or knowledge.

He has many names that describe roles He plays in our life. 

For all His greatness and glory, God’s favorite title is simply Father. He is the father of our spirits. He sent us into this world to obtain physical bodies and gain experiences that would help us develop faith in Him and then when our time on earth is complete, he is the being that will welcome us home. 

There is so much that we can study and learn and feel overwhelmed trying to understand about this great and powerful being. But there is one phrase found in 1 John in the New Testament that sums it all up in a word that I think we can all relate to and begin to understand.

1 John 4: 8 He that loveth not knoweth not God; for GOD IS LOVE.

1 John 4: 16 And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. GOD IS LOVE; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.

GOD IS LOVE. I want to focus on this phrase. What does this mean exactly? Let’s read a few more verses here in 1 John to complete this thought.

1 John 17 - 19 Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world. There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love. We love him, because he first loved us.

 

Love is spoken of in every context imaginable. Yet here in 1 John chapter 4 I feel there is clarity and simplicity that is absolute truth and the foundation of the quest that I am on. 

My quest is to become like my Father, My God.

I seek to be as He is. 

Here I learn in a succinct description, GOD IS LOVE, so I must BE LOVE as well.

 

Little children are often asked, “What do you want to BE when you grow up?” This question is generally designed to encourage and discover. We want the next generation to be exploring their soul to see what they are drawn to learn about and how they want to live their lives.  We want to learn what they enjoy and find ways to support their journey. Even as adults, when searching for our next step or a new path we might say we are still trying to decide what to BE when we grow up. Adulting is hard, and maybe our experiences have not brought us the fulfilment or success we anticipated, and so we seek another concept to discover another layer of who we are.

This is life, the process of revealing our true identity to ourselves. Each human being is unique and individual. As a parent I have raised four children, and even in their infancy I could identify character traits and unique personalities that helped me understand who my children are at their core. As the world impacts those children, they struggle to know who they are and what their place in life might be. I watch and try to remind them of what I know about their authentic being, but their journey is for them to discover who they are. I already know who they are and what they are capable of.

In much the same way, I believe, our Heavenly Father knows each one of us and all we are capable of doing and being. He allows us the process of the human experience, including the heartbreaking and the horrible parts, so we can discover who we are in successful moments as well as those difficult circumstances. Through opposition we see contrast and find deep within our soul the power to rise above, to change and to seek for something better.  But without an obstruction in our path, we never discover the internal drive that draws us into eternity.

 

Our infinite soul is on a quest to know who we are, and what our existence is really about. But there are two different forces trying to shape the outcome of our journey. We are continually becoming something. I would suggest that we have a choice to make in our becoming.

Will our becoming be an evolution or a revelation?

 

 Let me explain what I mean.

 

Evolution is the process of change in all forms of life over generations. To be super simplistic, there is a morphing that takes place that is perpetuated by various forces that impact change and even survival. Environmental challenges have an impact that require changes. Adaptive plasticity develops traits in response to imposed conditions. This creates resilience to varying environments. That is very basic.

For my purposes, if our becoming process is propelled solely by evolution, we are experiencing change according to influences out ourselves and what the world around us is telling us to BE? Evolving is living in a survival mode where we adapt according to outside demands, influences and suggestions. This is a growing process, and indeed we all have this type of becoming in our journey.  We adapt to survive. But the outcome of who we are becoming is greatly managed by the circumstances outside of ourselves.

 

Revelation is a process of disclosing of some form of truth or knowledge through communication with God. When we are in the becoming process through the application of revelation, we are choosing to become what God has created us to become.  We seek His guidance and adjust our path according to the promptings of the Spirit. We strive to live the life God reveals to us and trust His plan over our own.  God created us and has planted within each of us seeds of Eternity. His plan is to help us discover, cultivate and grow into our Eternal potential. He is waiting to guide us on that journey of discovery if we ask Him.

 

Evolution = Outside influences forcing change to survive

Revelation = Discovering truth about our Eternal identity and destiny

 

I felt the need to point out that we have the agency to allow outside influences to force our changes, or we can seek to discover our truth within ourselves, through loving and trusting God and His plan.

As we strive to keep that first great commandment and love God, we learn who He is and what that means about us and for us. He is our Father, and we as children of God have the potential to become like Him. Becoming like Him is an individual revelatory process.

 

The becoming process is something that happens with every thought, and every moment, and every action or inaction. If we make a conscious decision to grow into the highest and best version of ourselves, it must be a decision to seek God’s guidance and help as we learn who we are and what we are capable of. “With God all things are possible.” (Matt 19:26, Mark 10:27).  “Our Heavenly Father did not put us on earth to fail but to succeed gloriously.” (April 2012 General Conference, How to Obtain Revelation and Inspiration for Your Personal Life, Elder Richard G. Scott).

 

We are here to succeed at becoming like our Heavenly Father.

Our Father, God, The God who IS LOVE.

We are here to learn Love.

We learn love by choosing to think loving thoughts, about others and about ourselves.

We are here to say loving words and feel loving feelings.

We are put in families and communities and church callings and employment situations and political storms that will try and test and challenge our ability to love. We face health issues, financial difficulties, loss, betrayal, loneliness and a myriad of faith shaking trials.

These are the refining fires of our soul and the purpose for our existence.

We are here to become Love, in every horrible circumstance this world can throw at us, and we can.

We can if we turn to our Eternal Father and ask Him to reveal to us how. 

How do I live Love today?

How do I live Love with these people, or in this circumstance?   

How do I become a conduit of God’s love for those I encounter along my path each day?

How do I shift myself into a space where I can… not only think love, say love and feel love which enables others to experience Gods love through me, but how, God, how can I actually, literally BE LOVE?

 

I may not know everything, but I know a thing or two about living life.

I love sharing my perspectives and hope to hear from you, my friends, on how these thoughts may have brought you closer to your authentic and eternal identity.

I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

The focus of my life is to Be Love, Be Light and Be Happy.

This is Darlene Matheson. I am a certified Professional Life & Happiness Coach.

That Moment Was Enough

That Moment Was Enough

By Darlene Matheson

I find myself at the garden gate
I feel the deepening pain
A burden heavy settles in
The clouds release their rain

My body weakens with deep fear
I tremble to my knees
My life blood drains from deep within
My soul struggles with the plea

What would, Thou Lord, have me to do?
My strength has gone away
I know the words, Thy will be done
But I need thy help today

My fears take over, doubts set in
How can I drink this cup?
I catch a glimpse, another kneels
His eyes are lifted up.

I see His tear, His trembling hand,
The drops of blood so red
I catch His eye; I know at once
It’s my burden on His head

His peace enfolds my fears,
I know His mercy and His love
He lifts me up, His warm embrace,
This moment is enough

My life I give for Thy great work,
My will I freely give
Though pain and sorrow come
I know because of Thee I live

I saw His tear, His trembling hand,
I saw His blood so red
I saw His eye; I know He bore
MY burden on His head

I felt His peace enfold my fears,
I felt His perfect love
He lifts me up, His warm embrace,
That moment was enough

Blizzards and Blue Skies

The week began cold with grey skies and blizzard conditions. Blizzards can be treacherous and frightening.  But if you have the luxury of watching the snow from a warm and comfortable location, the storm can bring many beautiful blessings.  For me this week, the blessings of the blizzard were hidden in a slow customer flow which allowed our store some much needed time to clean out and get organized in our back room.  It also allowed me to take some time during work, to get out and "play" in the snow, cleaning snow off cars and shoveling the sidewalk in front of the store.  Providing a few minutes of service to employees and customers brought joy to my heart, and a "thank you" rose from a sweet employee.  
By mid-week the storm clouds began to part and blue skies allowed light to cast away the gloom.  Roads began to dry up and white snow radiated brighter days ahead.  Customer traffic picked up in the store, and our little reprieve had given us freshly stocked shelves and renewed enthusiasm. 
So, how can this relate to my life?  It seems that the challenges I face, nothing more extreme than anyone else must endure, don't just blow through my world in a few days, and clear out with the efficiency of nature's storms.  Spiritual and emotional  trials are much messier than the slushy streets during a winter storm. The tears that flow in months and years of heartbreaking circumstances, can easily rival any flood from an unruly river.  
What came to mind this week, as a reminder from the storm, was a thought I had as I drove to work the day the blue skies began to appear.  It was still very snowy, and clouds continued to fill the sky.  In fact, the roads were gross to even look at, with the snow and dirt and all else that had actually turned the pure white snow literally black.  As I focused on the road covered with black, mucky snow it seemed depressing and discouraging.  Then, I looked up to evaluate the skies forecast, and that's when I saw it.  Light.  Blue sky.  Parting clouds.  It was actually quite stunning. The trees were filled with snow and the sun reaching through the storm clouds illuminated beauty that was all around.  More powerful than parting the clouds, was the hope and joy that came with the realization that as I redirect my focus UP, things look brighter.  The moment sounds trite, but the experiencing of such a sensation, at least for me, was inspiring.  I felt a intensely vivid lesson of how important my focus is on what I will see, both as I drive to work and in my life as a whole. It is not just a matter of where I am in my journey, but what I choose to focus on, that will make all the difference in how I will feel.

Today, I'm still looking up!

Seeing God's hand in my life!

Two weeks ago I taught a lesson about looking for and seeing God's hand in our lives.  As I considered the many ways I feel the love of my Father in Heaven and my sweet Savior, I realized that if I want to feel that love more often, I need simply watch more closely and acknowledge each whisper of the spirit.  As I tune in, I will be filled more freely.  
I began making a quick note each day as a tender mercy came to me with a little love note from my Eternal Father.  It is most often something small, but clearly with my "I love you" from heaven brightening my day.
One day I received two text messages within minutes of each other, from two distant friends on opposite sides of the country, each simply expressing gratitude for me and love for our friendship.  How could they both (that did not know each other) think to say such sweet words of encouragement within minutes of each other, just to brighten my day.  Only through the whispering of the spirit could this message of love come to remind me of friendships and love that still hold me close when miles keep dear ones apart.  
Each day something truly happens that reminds me I am loved by my Father in Heaven. It was not many days later another tender mercy filled me with such a powerful witness, I was immediately overcome with tears and gratitude.  It was a very cold day, and I was requiring a little more effort than usual to keep my spirits up.  I had the thought that I could really use a walk on the beach with a friend today to lift my spirit.  Since I am in Northern Utah slipping around the icy roads and bundled up beneath layers of clothes to keep out the chill, the beach seemed such a distant dream of warmth and serenity.  But my tender Father in Heaven heard my unspoken wish and immediately sent an angel to fill my heart with a witness of His love for me and my unrealistic desire. I received a completely random text picture of the beach from a dear friend who had taken her kids for a beach day in Virginia.  The message simple said, "A picture just for you". I was instantly transported to a moment with this friend on a distant beach as she and her kids played.  She had no way of knowing the thought I had just moments before, I had not even said the words out loud.  It was not common practice for this friend and I to send pictures like this.  The only way this could have happened was through the whispering of the spirit, to say my Father hears my silent longings, and is acknowledging my hearts desires.
Indeed, my testimony of Gods hand in my life has been strengthened each day as I watch for, and then express thanks for His hand, His hope, His tender loving care for my sometimes fragile heart.