Transfigured In Love: Becoming More Lovable Through Grace and Christ (Lectio Divina)

Lectio:
“We have an obligation not only to love each other, but also in our love to make ourselves as lovable as possible so that it is easy for our sisters and brothers to love us.”
~William of Saint-Thierry

Meditatio:
William of Saint-Thierry’s statement challenges us to consider that it is not enough to merely love others. We must also be willing to become easier to love. As we seek to please God and become who He calls us to be, we gradually become the kind of people who draw others nearer to Him (Matthew 4:19). We accomplish this most easily if our demeanor is attractive, not repulsive, if we are pleasant to be around, not disagreeable, and if it is obvious to others that we have been transformed in, by, and for love, outwardly as well as internally.

In the Gospels, it is clear that Jesus not only loved his friends and disciples but was also loved by them; his character and demeanor were such that they wanted to be around him. Obviously, this was not universally true, for many hated Jesus, were frightened by him, or were envious of him, but those who knew him best found him both loving and lovable. William of Saint-Thierry is calling us to become more like Jesus — to let the grace within us transfigure us until we glow with the light of the divine love from which, with which, and for which we were made (Luke 9:29). Our divine nature, the imago Dei, should be a light unto the world, seen and felt by others — not hidden, like a lamp under a bushel basket (Matthew 5:14-16).

Oratio:
Love evades my grasp
like a feather in the wind
I neither know how to have
nor to hold it
to receive it
or to give it away
as much as I chase it
I also push it away
perhaps if I stopped trying
to love
to be loved
I might see
that I am the wind

Contemplatio:
How might God be inviting me to become more open, gentle, and loving so that others can more easily encounter His love through me?

Related Scripture:
“And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil.” (2 Timothy 2:24)

For Further Reading:
If you enjoyed this post, you may also like Oratio Divina: The Will to Love

~Robert Van Valkenburgh