NTU CSA Charismatic Prayer Group

Tommy has shared about Love v.s. fear emphasizing more on the fear.
To make it complete, I want to share about the love part :)

Tommy’s sharing reminded me on one homili being brought by Fr John Wong from SMOTA.
He shared that the opposite of love is not hatred; it is fear. Fear to love.
Fear anticipates love.

Most of the time we don’t love something/someone because we are afraid of being hurt, disappointed, humiliated…

I hate exam period because I am afraid of the load of study.
I had a nerd friend during my junior high school. He wore his socks up to his knee, which apparently looked funny in the eyes of my friends.So everyone kept mocking him. I was there, looking from afar, having my pity on him but not an inch I moved to embrace him. I hide my love (as a friend) to him because I was afraid my friends will also mock me.
I hate uncertainties because I have no control on them and they can end up in disappointments

When I reflect back, I realize that I hate something or fail to love something/one because of my fear.
Now that Tommy has shared how to conquer the fear, the love might not automatically emerge. I personally think that we need a big effort to love, truly love.

I read this amazing book about meaning of love according to Catholic Church, and this what I get.

How do you measure love?
When you are attracted to someone?
When you think that the best thing of your world is her/him?
When you miss her/him like crazy if you dont meet her/him for a day?
When you can’t help thinking of her/him all the time?
When you sacrifice everything to someone but when she/he refuses to sacrifice you are angry/feel cheated?
They are probably signs of love, but they are not love.
Love goes beyond ‘attracted,think,missing,feel’, love goes beyond mind and heart.
Love takes action and expects nothing back.
Love is to give all and accept all.

Don’t know how to love?
Ask God, ask Jesus! Because God is love (1 John 4:16)

Let’s learn from the Master.
God loves us, He gives everything to us, even the His only Son
Jesus loves us, He gives everything to us, even His life, His dignity, on the cross
God love us, He accept us the way we are.
He knows we are great sinners
He knows we are weak, yet He accepts us.

In relation with ‘fear’, come to my mind that God loves us with no fear. He keeps giving chance for us to repent and keeps giving forgiveness eventhough He knows that we could betray Him again with our sins.
Jesus has also loved us with no fear of suffering in His way to Calvary.

As we are asked to be more and more like Christ. We, too, are asked to love like the way He does.
I, myself, started this resolution of love by learning to love myself. I know I have weaknesses and had fell so many times into sins but I learn to forgive myself and encourage myself to raise up again, instead of burying myself in guilt.
Then I start to love God’s plan in my life. To give myself to be part of God’s wonderful plan to His people through service and accept His plan although His plans are different from mine. This part is actually related to Tommy’s sharing about surrender.
Then, I can start loving others. For me, if we have not loved ourselves or our lives yet, it will be so difficult for us to love others. It’s like we have not filled up our cup of love, so we cannot share love to others yet.

If love is so hard to do, why should we love?
For me, because I can’t imagine a life without love. I would only live for myself, my world only consists of me, myself, and I. How terribly empty woulld it be? Besides, love is the greatest commandment from God. We are called to love our God and one another as God has loved us (Matthew 22:37-39, John 15:12).
I personally also believe that love can conquer everything because I had seen how God’s love can conquer the gap between a King and sinners and conquer a painful death on the cross.

To conclude,
Love humbly, just like Jesus who is the King yet died like a criminal on the cross.
Love freely, free from fear and selfishness, just like Jesus who conquered the fear of suffering. He could escape from suffering, but He didn’t.
Love sincerely, expect nothing back, just like Jesus who is always with us even when we fail to love Him back.
When loving seems so hard, ask the Master.

Have a full cup of love! :)

Reference:
Love, Sex, and the Catholic Church by Thomas & Donna Finn