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"Beloved, let us love one another, because love is from God; everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love." (1 John 4:7-8)
“There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear; for fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not reached perfection in love. We love because he first loved us.” (1 John 18-19)
Commentary
God is love. How easily we say it; how often we hear it. How do we penetrate a phrase that is, in so many ways, a cliché? St. John reaches out to guide us toward a greater understanding of and openness to that love.
John tells us that the origin of all love is in God and that human love is a reflection of God’s love. He assures us that God’s love is a creative force, a love which has called into being all of creation—each one of us! We are invited to receive and to return love.
God’s love is…
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In the quiet moments of prayer I don’t know that I have an image of God, but more of a presence at the times I am able to be truly present. Sometimes I have an experience of my heart being consumed with the love and comfort of God and other times I feel so far away as my thoughts drift from one thing to another. However, the Lord calls me back time and time again on my journey. I pray this gift of faith will bring me one day face to face with the one who loves me unconditionally.
Only in recent years have I found it easier to pray and meditate in the wee hours.
Some days I find my prayer time to be dry, but that is usually when I find myself over tired. There are times that I get great insight and other times when I just feel comfort.
My prayer time usually starts with scripture or formal prayer. I than find myself thinking about some point in scripture or I take one phrase or word from formal prayer and dwell on that.
I’m still a novice when it comes to prayer—for years it was only the prayers we memorize as children, or prayers I made up that for some crazy reason I thought should rhyme—but now I talk, really talk to God. I also begin often with reading Scripture, and I admit there are times when I will just open the Bible anywhere and read the first lines that draw my attention and begin praying based on the words there, but it has become such a part of me that even as I continue through out the day, my spare moments and thoughts are all drawn to Him.