Hope and faith will both come to an end when we die. But love will remain. Love is eternal. Love comes from God and returns to God. When we die, we will lose everything that life gave us except love. The love with which we lived our lives is the life of God within us. It is the divine, indestructible core of our being. This love not only will remain but will also bear fruit from generation to generation.
When we approach our deaths let us say to those we leave behind, “Don’t let your heart be troubled. The love of God that dwells in my heart will come to you and offer you consolation and comfort.”
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May 17, 2008 at 2:11 pm
renaissanceguy
Nouwen makes a great point here. It inspires me to show more love, just as the death of my sister, who was very loving, has inspired me to show more love.
May 17, 2008 at 3:30 pm
helenl
RG, Nouwen was a great spiritual writer. If you don’t get his devotions, and you want them, they can be sent by e-mail each day from http://www.henrinouwen.org/ I post them often but not every day.
May 17, 2008 at 7:04 pm
renaissanceguy
Thanks for the link. Yes, I read one of his books (I think he wrote more than one).
May 17, 2008 at 11:42 pm
helenl
He wrote quite a few, and now some of his work is being published posthumously. There’s probably a list on the web site.
“The Wounded Healer” is probably his most well known. I also like “The Return of Prodigal Son” and “Can You Drink the Cup?”