Love and Be Loved

Step #1: Lectio / Read

Click the link below or open your Bible to the passage and read through the reading at least once, paying attention to what is happening in the text. 

1 John 4:7-10

---

Step #2: Meditatio / Meditate

Use the following meditation to help you reflect more deeply on the Scripture (you may want to read the passage again).

​One of the most important things in our lives is love.

Love is so powerful that it can give us a reason to live, can change the world, and even bring about new life. Love is what we are created to do, but in reality, most of us don’t even know what love is. Everybody has experienced love even in the tiniest glimpse, but let’s be honest, we are all broken and so is our love.

God decided he wanted to show us what true and perfect love looks like. Saint John tells us about that today in the reading. This is actually one of my favorite chapters in the whole Bible. It may seem repetitive but that’s because we need to hear it over and over and over again. God is love. God loves us. God loves you. God loves me. And to show us this love, He died for us.

One of my favorite songs of all time is “This Love” by Housefires. What I love about this song is that it reminds us that as grand as God’s love is, it is also a simple, every day kind of love. I love it’s not meant to be experienced just at our conversion moment, but every day of our lives. Be joyful today and know that you are loved.

---

Step #3: Oratio / Pray

These questions are to be used to talk to God; have a conversation with the Lord about these questions and what is going on in your heart as you pray today.

How do I experience love in my life? 

Is the love I experience broken love, or is it love that is perfected by Christ?

In what ways am I experiencing the simple, every day kind of love that God has for me?

Step #4: Contemplatio / Contemplate

In this step, you listen. Stop talking, let God speak to your heart. You may repeat one of these short phrases to focus your mind on the Lord.

"You are love."

"I love you, Lord."

"Teach me how to love."

---

Step #5: Actio / Act

In light of today's reading and your time spent in prayer with the Lord, what concrete action or actions will you take to let this encounter with the Lord bear fruit in you today?

Spend time today taking note of all of the ways you experience and give love in your life. Write down every single way you are being loved and loving those around you, and invite the Lord into that love so he can purify it and make it whole.

---

Smartphone Lock Screen

The following image is here for you to save and use as a background or lock screen on your smartphone or device to help you carry today's Lectio Divina with you the rest of the day.

---

"Today's prayer was prepared by Sean Norris, a theology teacher at JSerra Catholic High School in Orange County, CA. 

If you have anything you'd like our team to pray for, please go to the page of our website called ""Prayers"" and let us know how we can pray for you today. "