All You Need is Love

Some fans have been patiently waiting for this week for 29 years: the return of the Royals to the World Series. With the series tied at 1-1, hope still exists, and most of America seems to be rooting for this Cinderella team. The players have worked hard, going to practice over and over again, fixing their mistakes and learning to work as a team. They have eaten the right food and taken the right amount of rest. They have dedicated their whole lives to this moment. To what have you dedicated your whole life? To what have you given your heart, your mind, your soul?

Read Deuteronomy 6:4-9 and Matthew 22:34-39.

We are supposed to love God with our heart, mind, and soul, and to love our neighbors as ourselves. We are being asked for our whole lives, we are being asked to dedicate everything to love. Just as professional athletes give all of themselves to the game, so should we give all of our lives to God. That means we incorporate showing up to practice, getting the right nourishment, and getting Sabbath time.

For as the Beatles sang, “all you need is love.” While they make it sound simple, the truth is that love is hard work. Loving God means giving of yourself; loving God means making time for worship, for reading the Bible, for deepening your relationship with God. Loving your neighbor means making sacrificial time to work at Let’s Help or Harvesters or the Rescue Mission, or giving your time to a neighbor, or increasing your pledge to Trinity’s ministries as we reach out to our neighbors. When we love our God and love our neighbors, we all get what we need. As we give to each other, so do we receive. Everyone shares their love for God and their love for each other, and that’s when we witness real Christian community.

Come on Sunday and hear stories of how Trinity is changing lives. Come on Sunday, ready to worship with your whole heart, mind, and soul. Come on Sunday to be nourished and find rest, come on Sunday to practice the rhythms and the language of loving God and loving our neighbors. For when we fulfill the two greatest commandments, it could take us all the way to the championship: with all the love we need as we glorify God, share Christ’s love, and make new disciples.

Grace and peace,
Pastor Kate