“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind; and you shall love your neighbor as yourself.”  – Jesus

These words outline the two great steps of faith in the Christian walk: loving God and loving others as yourself. All preparation for living and serving in this world must rise out of these words. They sum all our existence as God would have it to be.

The second command would be impossible to fulfill without the first! Any part of our lives held back from God is a part not available to others, thus hindering us from loving as we love ourselves. Therefore, we will first consider what loving God means.

Every little child begins life with self-awareness. Everything takes its meaning from the relationship to the child. We first learn to interpret life as it affects us. It is only later that we become aware of others and their needs but, it is the learning directed at ourselves that forms the foundation we need to reach out toward others. When we have problems with our self-concept, then we always have problems relating to others. Continue reading →