O, Lord, help us to love You more and more!

O, Lord, help us, to love each other more!

You realize this is truly what our Faith is all about – Learning how to fall head over heals in love with God – who is head over heals in love with us.

A journey that began on our Baptism day, when the Lord poured His loved deep within each of us.  Never to leave us from that day on.  A journey that continues forever until we come Face to Face with our Lord. On that day, will the Lord see in us, His love being reflected back to Him?

Scripture says: “God is love, and whoever remains in love remains in God and God in him.”

Notice what it does not say:

• It does not say that God loves us enough to bring us into being,

• It does not say God loves us if we are good,

• It does not say God is loving,

• It says that God is love.

A love that is Truth, Creating, All Good, Unconditional and Eternal.
Never ending.

We as humans have a great capacity for giving and receiving this love.  We don’t want our love to be just a momentary feeling either; we want it to become visible, tangible, lasting, and always more real.  It is good that we have such desires.

Love has four Dimensions: Spiritual, Emotional, Mental, and Physical.  We imagine how God loves us in a Spiritual, Emotional, and Mental way.  But do we think about how does God touch us Physically today? 

When I ask this question “How does God touch you Physically today?  I usually get the answer – through another person.  While true, - how does God really touch you in a physical intimate way?

At Christmas we celebrate God coming to us, God becoming flesh.  I would like us to ponder how did Jesus really come to us?

Some will say as a Human, as a Man, or as a Child, but Jesus really came to us as a Baby.  And what is one of the first things a Baby does?  Some say cry, some say breathe, and I ask before that. 

The first thing a Baby does is touch.  Touch in the Mother’s Womb, Touch when Born, Touch when given to the Parents, Touch while Growing-up.

That is exactly what Jesus did to us.  He Touched us.  He became Visible, He needed to be nurtured, loved, fed, and taught.  He grew up spending His whole life touching us in the 4 Dimensions of Love.

Before He went to His Passion, He said I am not leaving you alone.  I am not taking back the Physical Dimension of my Love.  I will always be with You.

After Jesus’ Resurrection He continued to physically Touch:

• Mary Magdalene at the Tomb

• With the Disciples on the road to Emmaus

• In the Room on Easter Sunday Evening.

• With Thomas a week later: "Put your finger here …

• In the 40 days before His Ascension, when Jesus said to them, "Come, have breakfast."

Jesus did these physical signs so you may (come to) believe that Jesus is the Messiah, and is physically present with us now, and that through this belief you may have life in His name. 

Jesus touches us Physically in the Eucharist each time we receive Holy Communion.  We are in total union with Him.  When the Minister says “Body of Christ” we bow before God and cup our hands to make a Throne for God to rest.  We hold God in our Hands.   

We say Amen – I believe this is truly the real presence of Jesus Christ, I believe Jesus truly becomes part of me.

St. Augustine said:

"Be What You Receive and Receive What You Are."

by Deacon Michael