I find it fascinating that when asked what was the most important commandment, Jesus answered “Love God with all your heart, soul and might and love your neighbor as yourself.” Don’t you think the answer would have been more profound than that? And since it’s not then it begs the question “Why do we make this Christian life so difficult?”

 If all that is required of us are those two things, then how simple does life become. Or is it?

 Loving God with all your heart, soul and might should come easy to someone who has surrendered to Him but truth be told, sometimes that’s not so easy. To love God with everything is to always put Him first before our own selfish desires, to trust Him without question and to surrender every area of our lives to Him. To look at that list at first glance makes it seem like God wants to lord it over us, control us and honestly, it makes God seem like a tyrant. But nothing could be further from the truth.

 The truth is that when we love our Creator, just like we love anyone else, we want to spend time with Him, learning His ways, talking to Him and the more we do that, the more we realize what a great unfathomable love He has for us. The closer I get to Jesus, the more I realize the pure love that caused Him to sacrifice everything for me. The longer I spend in His presence just talking about the things in my life, the more it becomes clear that He is in control of all that I can’t control and He can be trusted to have my best in mind. It’s like watching the ocean waves come onshore and crash with a thunderous sound. You realize that you’re in the presence of something so powerful, so much bigger than yourself, that it takes your breath away.

 When I work at trusting God more and more each day, I find that I can stop relying on myself to figure it all out and trying to fix what is not going well. Because more and more I realize…there are very few things in my control. More often than not, there’s not much I can do about the majority of challenges that come my way. And that’s where worry and fear would take over if I let it. But realizing that I can trust God completely, that He is never taken by surprise by things like COVID-19, then I can rest in that fact and not lose my mind.

 And lastly, surrendering my desires and all the areas of my life to the God who loves me without condition brings about the kind of peace that cannot be explained. If I surrendered my life to God but not my marriage, it would hinder my ability to love my husband completely. If I allowed God access into everything about me except my weaknesses then I would be plagued by them and would never fully realize what He has planned for me to do in this life.

 But then there is the loving your neighbor part. How interesting. It makes you question why Jesus thought that was so important. I’ve been thinking a lot about this as we are under a strict stay-at-home order around the country. I’ve waved at my new neighbors often but neither of us had taken the time to introduce ourselves. But since we’ve all been in this lockdown mode with many not going to work, it’s been so interesting to see the dynamics changing in our little neighborhood. Families are out in their front yards, playing cornhole or pitch and catch. Neighbors who know each other well have brought out lawn chairs in the evening and just started hanging out together. Recently on one of our walks around the neighborhood, the group invited us over for a chat. And it was wonderful! I learned about their families and got to tell them about ours. It was truly the highlight of my week!

 Of course, our neighbors are more than just those who live next door. That term extends to those in our community; the cashiers, the delivery drivers, bank tellers, business owners. Right now, besides healthcare workers and first responders, these are our true heroes who have been overlooked and taken for granted in the past. These are all of our neighbors and deserve our love and respect at all times, not just these challenging ones.

 On one of our walks around the neighborhood, we encountered a family who had set up a makeshift grocery store in their front yard, complete with signs that said everything was free; take what you needed. Other neighbors have joined in and it’s grown to several tables full of snacks, canned goods, paper supplies and more. On the local Facebook swap pages, neighbors are giving away items that they think someone could use at this time. We were fortunate enough to pass on some Easter candy and basket goodies to a Mom who didn’t have enough for her kids. What a joy it was to fill that simple need. Neighbors are posting “thank yous” to people who paid for their meals or coffee. It’s been wonderful to see the generosity all around this city as we all face this challenge together. We saw the same thing happen after hurricane Katrina in the New Orleans area. Neighbors became lifelines as families were separated and dispersed around the country.

 And so it makes complete sense that Jesus charged us with loving our neighbors the way we love ourselves. He knew that putting the needs of others before our own needs, pushes us away from selfishness which ultimately leads to isolation.

 I leave you with these thoughts, dear readers. Discover the areas that you have yet to surrender to God and release them. Spend time with Him so that you can realize how much He can be trusted, how much He loves you and all that He has in store for your life. And then discover the joy of knowing your neighbors and loving them well. First, find out their names and call them to check on them during this difficult time. See if there is a need. Something as small as grabbing an extra loaf of bread or a gallon of milk to keep a mom from having to go out with the kids is a huge blessing. And don’t forget to greet those workers around you with a smile, a thank you and much respect; today and every day. Look for small ways that you can bring joy to someone’s life. A card, a batch of cookies, a small giftcard. Being a good neighbor only costs you a little bit of time and a small amount of effort but to those who are recipients, it’s the whole world!