Explore the challenge of loving selflessly as Christ loves us, embracing sacrifice and grace in daily life. Discover insights and reflections to inspire your journey.
Today's Gospel: John 15:9-17
“Love one another as I love you.”
Sometimes this Gospel is comforting to me. Being reminded of Christ’s love is never a bad thing. But other times it overwhelms me. The exhortation to love as Christ loves us gives me pause. I ask myself if I can do that. Can I lay down my life for my friends? Even if Christ isn’t calling me to physically die for others, He’s telling me that love includes sacrifice. And that sacrifice means caring more about the other than I do myself.
That sounds hard. Really hard, if I’m honest.
In a world that seems to be filled with pain and brokenness, how do I love that selflessly? Won’t I get hurt? Won’t people take advantage of me?
These are valid questions. The answer that comes to mind is from St. Teresa of Calcutta: Do it anyway.
In St. Teresa’s home for children, words painted on the wall acknowledged the difficulty of doing the right thing in a world full of wrong. It was a series of “if” statements followed by “be anyway” statements. One of them stands out in relation to this Gospel: “If you are honest and sincere, people may deceive you. Be honest and sincere anyway.”
When we love as Christ loves us, we take a risk. That risk could be emotional. Will I be loved in return? It might be physical. Will I get jailed or killed for loving like Christ?
For Christ, His love for us meant both the emotional pain of betrayal and rejection and the physical pain of His Passion. While we might not be called to those extremes of love, we need Christ’s grace to love like Him. Luckily, He’s more than willing to help us learn to love like Him.
Ponder:
How can I love others in my daily life the way Christ loves me?
Pray:
Jesus, I can’t love like You without Your divine assistance. Send Your grace upon me to help me love as You do.
Pray Together:
Discuss what it means to love one another as I love you. What qualities of Jesus’s love for us are the most challenging to imitate?
Copyright 2026 Laura Nelson
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