If ye fulfill the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself, ye do well                                                                                                                                 James 2:8 Greetings Family: Praying all is well with you and yours.  Praying for the spirit of God to rest upon you, and guide you to the place that has already been prepared. Family…. As we came together via of our weekly conference call on last Saturday (4/18), I reflect on the vibrant conversation centered around the second chapter in the book of James.  As we entered in agreement with the dangers of being judgmental in the church setting, in that we would set our focus on people who may (or may not) be of a certain stature; it became clear this is of utmost importance at all times in our lives.  The bible points to the “royal Law” and the need for us to reach a place where we love our neighbor as ourselves. All of our questions came back to a central theme… Love wins! When we think of the royal law, in that we should love our neighbor as ourselves, it’s easy to dwell on what it means to truly love oneself.  Its easy to go down the rabbit hole of a standard that searches for perfection in oneself before being available to my neighbor.  But I say to you this is not so.   The bible promises that in times like these there abides three things: faith, hope and love.  But the greatest of these is love. Many of our friends and family members have already lost income and applied for unemployment benefits.  Many have anxiety about the immediate future.  Many have already experienced food shortages and are relying on the kindness of strangers. Whether two weeks or two months, this phase of our lives will come to an end.  Some of us will have suffered emotionally, some of us will have lost loved ones, and God forbid some will have lost confidence in what it means to be a Christian.  Here’s what I know: this royal law requires us to see with a different set of eyes.  The royal law requires us to choose love at the supermarket, or in the neighborhood, or on the job, or at church.  Several years ago there was a popular Christian marketing plan which asked the question; what would Jesus do?  I believe in this season a different question is directed to people of faith and it begs; what are “we” going to do?   Will we make excuses?  Will we choose to not show up?  Will we choose Love? My hand is raised first and I choose Love! God bless you Pastor Don