how do we love people? what's it mean?

Jesus said to love people. And how do we love them? 

By serving them.

When I heard that, I was like, Oh! I know that I'm supposed to love everyone -- as if my life depended on it. But that word, LOVE, I didn't understand how I was supposed to do that. 

I heard an illustration and it looked like this:

See, it's not about me. It's not about you. It's about us reaching out and serving people. Forgetting about ourselves and loving people; doing for them what we want them to do for us, except.. without expecting anything in return. In this world it's all about not being ripped off and everything -- but it says here, in Luke 6, and this is pretty scary... 

When someone gives you a hard time, respond with the energies of prayer for that person. If someone slaps you in the face, stand there and take it. If someone grabs your shirt, giftwrap your best coat and make a present of it. If someone takes unfair advantage of you, use the occasion to practice the servant life. 

If someone takes unfair advantage of you, use the occasion to practice servant life? Are you serious, Jesus? What does He even mean by this?

We forget that we weren't made to live in this place forever. That this world, this planet, this Earth, this isn't the end. No siree. It's hardly the beginning. I think what Jesus is trying to remind us of here, is that...

You don't need your best coat. You know, the one you paid a whole lot of money for and it's really warm and fuzzy. He's reminding you that you can't take it to Heaven anyway, so... let's bless this person with this coat.

Um, but I'm cold? I want to wear my coat? Why on earth would I give it away to some person who already took my favourite t-shirt?! That's my question, anyway.

But maybe Jesus is trying to explain to us stubborn, clueless people that... these things don't matter. That it's okay if we have to wear our thin, colour-faded jacket instead. He knows that when we get to Heaven, we're not gonna care anymore -- that even though this world is all about being treated right and people getting what they deserve, which does definitely not include our fuzzy warm coat -- well, we need to look beyond it.

I mean, we're called to serve people. Other people. We're not called to serve ourselves. Luke 6:39 [NLT],

 Give, and you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full—pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, running over, and poured into your lap. The amount you give will determine the amount you get back.


Jesus gives us this generosity; he pours it onto our laps! So, I'm wondering. How do we become generous? How do we serve people when we don't even know what they need? 


Pray.
Ask Jesus. 


dear Jesus, 
i want to serve. to forget about myself and serve people.
please show me how. please pour your love, your generosity, a desire to serve... onto my lap, into my soul. let it captivate my thoughts; loving You, serving people just like You did.
thanks Jesus.

listening to these days: count on you, bruno mars

reading right now: in the eye of the storm, max lucado