December 19

Scripture: Malachi 3:6-12

Reflection: “Returning God’s Love” by Joanie Yoder 

The book of Malachi begins with this wholehearted word from the Lord to His half-hearted worshipers: “I have loved you” (1:2). Though Israel had long been the object of God’s love, they no longer returned His love.

God listed the ways His people had offended His love through their disobedience. Israel’s response was to question God. When He implored them, “Return to Me, and I will return to you,” they questioned Him in their blindness, “In what way shall we return?” (3:7). With divine “tough love,” the Lord exposed their many blind spots. He did this so that they might repent and accept His love, and return it with wholehearted obedience.

We too are often half-hearted in our faith, appearing to love and serve God but really loving and serving ourselves. Today, as in Malachi’s time, God looks for people who reverence Him by maintaining two spiritual practices: speaking to each other about Him, and meditating on His wonderful attributes (v.16). The first is fellowship with God’s people; the second is fellowship with God Himself. Not only are we to receive and share God’s love, we are also to return it through glad obedience.
Such worshipers are God’s “jewels” (v.17). Are you one of them?

"We love You, Lord Jesus," we often will say,
But are we as ready His will to obey?
Let's heed what God's Spirit would have us to do—
That's how we show Him a love that is true. —D. De Haan

Application:

Solitude and Praying the Hours
Today we revisit the spiritual disciplines we exercised in the second week– solitude and praying the hours. These two disciplines invite us to spend time with God– to immerse ourselves in His presence and to converse with Him and in return God enables us to do what Jesus commands, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind… and love your neighbour as yourself” (Matt 22: 37, 39).

The reflection today suggests two ways for us to keep on loving God: speaking to each other about Him and meditating on His wonderful attributes. On this second last day of Advent, let us meditate on God’s wonderful love so that we may speak it to others. You may choose to do so in a block of time in solitude, or throughout the day when you pray the hours (morning, afternoon, evening and before bed) with the prayer provided below.

Prayer:

You, O God, love us from the moment of our conception,
You know us and you love us in the womb,
You love us and you call us
from before the moment of our first breath,
and you love us when we first see the light of day.
As a mother loves her child before she ever sees it,
and then embraces it gently from the moment of its birth,
so you love us – and we thank you.
Help us dear God to love one another in this way…
… … …

You love us, O God from the time of our naming
You love us in our growing
and hold us as we take our first steps.
You love us and walk beside us
as we explore the world with eager hands and eyes
As a father loves his child as he sees it grow and develop
so you love us – and we thank you.
Help us dear God to love one another in this way…
… … …

You love us, O God, as we mature and seek our way,
You love as we become aware of the world around us,
You love us as we smile and play, you even love us when
we say no and when we begin to stray.
As a mother loves her child
as she sees it become proud and tall,
so you love us even when we sin and fall..
Help us dear God to love one another in this way....
… … …

We thank you God for loving us when we are unloving
for caring for us when we are uncaring,
and for calling to us when we go far away....

Help us dear God to love one another in this way...

We ask all these things in the name of Christ Jesus,
He who is our Lord and our brother. Amen.