The Right Answer

It has given me great joy to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as the Father commanded us.  And now, dear lady, I am not writing you a new command but one we have had from the beginning. I ask that we love one another. And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love.

2 John 1:4-6

Lately my daily “quiet time” has consisted of me stealing a few minutes, grabbing my Bible, and flipping thru for something applicable to my day.  I wouldn’t recommend this plan (I need to get a study or something), but actually I’ve stumbled upon some good stuff lately.  Today I happened upon 2 John.  

It’s a short book, consisting of only 13 verses that John writes to a woman (of all people!), encouraging her to stay focused on the “truth,” and not to be misled by anything else.  The “truth,” the most important instruction, is that we “Love one another.”

We all have our own problems and ups and downs.  Lately my own focus has been on my marriage.  We recently hit a bump in the road which, thankfully, found us re-committing ourselves to our marriage and each other.  But it has also presented me with a lot of confusion – things are different now.  Frequently I find myself thinking, “What should I do?”

My questions multiply.  After 12 years of marriage, I was used to feeling like I knew all the answers.  Now suddenly, I feel I have none.  “How should I handle this conflict?”  or “What’s the best way to encourage my husband?”  or “Can I bite my tongue as I know I should?”  or “I don’t know what to say to him today.”  For many of us, these questions could just as easily apply to our children, or someone we work with, or a family member.  “Lord,” I finally appeal to Him, “I just don’t know what to do with this today.”

Well, the answer is Love.  And I should know better.  As John says, this is not a new command.  This is the rock-solid command Jesus taught and repeated and lived.  This is what my mom taught me, it’s what I love about my faith, and it’s what I cling to.  Yet sometimes, it’s not what I reach for first. 

But it should be.  How can I walk in Love? should be the question I am asking myself.  Not that this is an easy answer.  Not that this ‘fixes’ things.  But it’s what I’m commanded to do.  And even in my rocky track record, it has proven itself over the years.  Praying for a loving response to my husband, is the right answer. Seeking out a loving tone, is the right answer.  Helping someone see the value of themselves, is Love.  

I need to meditate on this tiny short book.  John is very concerned about the children of the early church being misled.  He is very focused on the right answer – the command to Love.  Lord, give me this focus. 

Heavenly Father, your Love is the example that gets me thru my day.  Your love is incredible – unconditional, forgiving, compassionate, honest, and strong.  I ask your Holy Spirit to fill me up with what the Son of God has shown me.  Help me to “walk in Love” in my life as a mother, a wife, a friend, and a child of God.  Amen.