Jesus said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.” This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Matthew 22:37 (NKJV)
Most people endlessly pursue happiness, but don’t actually know how to find it…or how to hold onto it if they do find it.
There are several qualities that can cultivate joy in your life, so today I wanted to talk about one of them: love. You know, most people think the best thing in life is to be loved. Did you know that’s not true? That’s actually second best.
The number one thing is loving somebody.
Think about it: fifty people could love you without you knowing it. In fact, there are people whose mates love them to pieces and they don’t believe it. It’s wonderful to be loved, but I’ve noticed that the happiest folks on the planet are outward-focused, lovers of others.
Today’s verse even places love in order: love God, love your neighbour, love yourself. When we get that order mixed up, it messes us up too. When we focus on ourselves first, we tend to worry: I wonder if anyone really loves me or My wife used to make me breakfast to show she loves me, but now she doesn’t pour milk on my cornflakes anymore.
Instead, reaching out and loving somebody has a different impact on your life. The most joyful people are the ones who stop fretting about who loves them and just reach out and love people. Loving somebody else brings you more joy than just being loved.
Love God first, then get out there and find out who you can show love to!