Why Love?

by P.S. Harper

"Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you.”

Jesus of Nazareth

September 17, 2025

There are times when I wish Love was something that we had absolutely no control over.

I’d rather it be like all those romantic movies when people despise each other, yet fall helplessly in Love and are clueless as to how it happened.

Life sure would be a lot easier and less painful if Love was some magical enchantment that sought us out like Cupid’s arrow when we least expect it.

Unfortunately, that’s not what Love is or how it works.

There are several defined types of Love, but no definition uses the word “easy.”

Today, I am not talking about a romantic feeling or how you and your buddies relate after your team won the big game. I’m not talking about the way you felt about your spouse on your wedding day or when your child got all A’s. I’m talking about our responsibility as human beings that are required of us for taking up space on this planet.

Love isn’t just something we are blessed enough to experience; it is something we are mandated to do.

Love is beautiful, wonderful, and life-giving, but that’s not all.

Love is hard.

Love is uncomfortable.

Love is frustrating.

Love is disappointment.

Love is scary.

Love is dangerous.

Regardless, we are called to Love with intention and purpose.

During the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus didn’t say, “Love those you feel like Loving, when it’s convenient, and only when they haven’t hurt your feelings or killed someone you Love.”

Love is an action.

Love is an example.

Love takes work.

Love is a commitment.

Love is a legacy.

Love is a command.

With all my failures, I pray I Love well. I pray we all become the living examples of Love Jesus called us to be.

Sharper Leader:

1.      Who do you feel incapable of loving because of the hurt they’ve caused?

o   Action Step: Even if from a distance and only in your heart, forgive them and Love them. If you can’t do it, ask Jesus to help you. He will!   

 

2.      How have you demonstrated Love to someone you believed did not deserve it?

o   Action Step: When you struggle to love or forgive, reflect on the time(s) someone did that for you. If you can’t think of any, try harder.

 

3.      Are you being the example of Love you want to be?

o   Action Step: Slow down. Choose your silence wisely. Choose your words wisely. Choose your actions wisely.

 

Recommended book: The Holy Bible. Specifically, the Sermon on the Mount, which can be found in Matthew 5.  

 

Before next week’s The Sharper Minute: Love yourself enough to Love and forgive someone you’ve found to be unLoveable or unforgivable.

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