A new commandment I give you: Love one another.   As I have loved you, so you must love one another.

(John 13:34 NIV)

The sanctuary was so quiet you could hear a pin drop, as the ushers passed the communion elements row to row.  Amidst this silence an old voice proclaimed I love you, to her son and daughter-in-law, seated on either side.  This elderly and frail soul was accompanied to worship each week by her family.  Though her body was wasting and her mind was no longer as clear as it once was, her heart knew what was important.  Over and over again she looked from one to the other, proclaiming: I love you.  The high sanctuary ceilings allowed her words to echo for all to hear.

As I sat and listened, I was so blessed as her words were so appropriate as we waited our turn to partake of the bread and cup. I love you.  “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16 NIV).

God loved us through the sacrifice of his Son. Christ loved us through his death and the forgiveness of our sin.  I love you.  What beautiful all-encompassing words that have come through the Father and the Son to the world, to each and every one of us.

The communion elements continued to circulate, as the senior’s words repeated.  Words that seemed to be coming straight from God himself, reminding us that Christ loved us, is still loving us, and will one day be coming again for his own, to be loved throughout eternity.

I love you.  When was the last time you spoke these words out loud to those you love?  When was the last time you proclaimed them aloud to God the Father, Christ the Son and the Holy Spirit who lovingly guides and teaches us each and every day?

May today be a day, when the words I love you, are echoed far and wide to those we know and those we love.  May they be echoed silently, verbally, and through the actions of the kind deeds we do for one another, that the whole world may know that we, as God’s people, love one another just as Christ has loved us.

Prayer: I love you, Lord.  Thank you for always loving me.  Thank you for your loving plan for this world.  Bless your people with motivation and grace to echo the words I love you, in one form or another, to all we know and meet.  In Christ’s name. Amen.

Lynne Phipps
Tawatinaw, Alberta, Canada