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Love “This is My commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this that one lay down his life for his friends. You are My friends, if you do what I command you” (John 15: 12-14) Statistics from a recent survey shows that the number one reason why more than seventy percent of employees in America leave their workplace is because they do not feel appreciated and that they are being taken for granted. This alarming turnover rate cost companies across America billions of dollars. It does not matter if you are General Motors, a local grocer, or a small franchise owner; losing an employee is not only economically costly, it can also create great psychological hardship. The question then becomes why do we not appreciate people more? Especially in light of the fact that if we do we can save billions of dollars, which in turn can be put back into the economy to purchase more infrastructure, or even be given back as incentive to those who have worked so hard to make our company successful. A very simplistic yet deep answer may be found in our understanding of love. In today’s culture the word love has been watered down to mean just about anything; we love our cars, our homes, our jobs, our dogs, our television set, our athletes? This love is much different from agape, the unconditional love that Christ commands His followers to have. If it were the same, than we would willingly lay down our lives for our dogs, cars, athletes and so on. It is sad to know that evil people will lay down their lives for evil, but how hard it becomes when good people are called upon to die for what is good. In light of the above Scripture we need to re-examine what love really means to us. Is love an emotion or a physical attraction or is it a response to a certain need which is met by someone or something else? If this is the case, then when that awareness changes or that need is no longer met we no longer love. After all is it not true that we have a right to be happy? On the other hand if love is a command and not an emotion, it then becomes a choice not a feeling. This is where true agape love lies, when we choose daily to love others as we esteem them better than ourselves. If we want to be a friend of God than we must be obedient to what He commands and if we are to be obedient then we have no choice but to agape. We may only attain true freedom and true satisfaction as we choose daily to agape. Then we can love not only those that are easy to love, but those persons who might not be as loveable. If we love our employees, co-workers, and customers unconditionally for what they are—special creations—they will feel appreciated. Then, perhaps we will lower the turnover rate and increase productivity. Lord, allow me the humility necessary to love others for who they are in You and not what they do for me. Meditation: What does love really mean to you? Jorge L. Valdes, Ph.D.
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