Today we are celebrating the third week of Advent. We have reflected on hope and faith in the prior two weeks and today’s focus is love.

If hope stems from our head and faith our hearts, then love’s anatomy is the feet. Love is action.

For God so loved the world….He sent us His son. If we could ever actually fathom what it means for the Almighty God, Creator and Sustain-er of the universe to become fully man, I think we would all be the most energetic, passionate, evangelists the world as ever seen. It is the wildest truth that can ever be told!

But, alas we are finite beings and can’t really grasp that type of sacrifice or love (and doesn’t even take into account Jesus’ sacrificial work on the cross).

We become accustomed to the idea and even reduce the concept down to tiny ceramic figures that we traditionally display like the ones we have here. There is nothing wrong with a nativity set, but it’s also beneficial to remember the powerful truth behind those little figurines. GOD moved on our behalf in a huge way by sending Jesus– love is action. We celebrate this love today.

Emmanuel is a name that we use to describe the Christ child during this time of year: “God with us”      Emmanuel… God is with us– oh how He loves!

If love is action, then we too need to be people of action. I believe loving well involves 2 things: empathy and work. This year “loving” one another may look different than it ever has before. In some cases, love may mean not gathering together in the same ways as we typically would. And yet again, maybe this year love means we must gather. It may mean showing grace to people we disagree with and forgiving when things just aren’t what we’d hoped they be. Either way, couple empathy and action to love others well this season.

No one has been untouched by this pandemic. We all need the love of God.