Week of May 13, 2002
Melanie H.

>"Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him."
     1 John 2:15

Survival - it's the first law that many people live by today, Christians as well as non-Christians. How can we survive in a world which seems so anti-Christian? John gives us an answer in today's verse. We must live in this world, but we need to live as God's chosen people. It's so easy to be captured by the lure of the world around us with the glitter of moving up the ladder materially and socially. Sometimes it's difficult to be different from others in the business world or even at church.

How can we tell if we are in love with the world? Sometimes we choose to do what feels good rather than what is best for us. Sometimes we try to fill up our emptiness with things, people, and activities that only God can fill. Sometimes pride permeates our life, usually characterized by defensiveness, excessive competitiveness, and the need to draw attention to ourselves. Often pride creeps into our relationships with others and the relationships reflects the standards of the world rather than God's pattern. When we don't love the world we acknowledge that all we are and have is a result of God's blessings, and it has been entrusted to us to be used for God's glory.

Pray that God may give you the wisdom and willingness to make decisions in keeping with His will as revealed in His Word.Amen

Contributed by Melanie H.
Published Monday May 13, 2002
Week 24 of Liturgical Year A