Luke 10:25–37

Be still: Lord, still my heart in your presence today. Open my eyes to see you afresh and my ears to hear you speaking through your Word. Amen

Read: Luke 10:25–37 

He answered, 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind,' and ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.' (v27)

Encounter: Earlier this year, my friend and I got stranded in a blizzard after her car became stuck on a hill. There I was in a pair of Adidas Gazelles trying to single-handedly push the car! We were far from home and close to tears. Then out of nowhere, five men came running from the comfort of their homes and gave us the push we needed. They didn’t know us, gained nothing from helping, and we'd interrupted their evenings - but honestly, it restored my faith in people.

Life often tells us: put yourself first. Chase your goals, plans, peace, success. But notice Jesus doesn’t say, 'Love yourself more.' It's a radically different command: 'Love your neighbour AS yourself.' Jesus' challenge is far deeper: do we love people with the same care and attention we naturally give ourselves?

The Samaritan did. While others walked past protecting their schedules, comfort, and convenience, he stopped and gave his time and money to care for someone broken, someone that society said to ignore. This love flows from loving God. It reflects the love of Christ – sacrificial, inconvenient, costly love. The love that moves toward people not away from them.

Busyness often blinds us. Like the priest and Levite, we become so focused on where we’re going that we miss the hurting people in front of us.

Imagine how different our streets, homes, churches, workplaces, and communities would look if we intentionally loved others with the same urgency we give ourselves. The real question is not whether we know this command, but whether others experience it through us.

Apply: Take a moment to think about the people around you today. Is there someone whose needs you’ve walked past because you were too busy, distracted, or focused on yourself? What interruption this week might be an invitation to love like Jesus? Ask God to show you one practical way to love someone sacrificially this week

Devote: Lord, open my eyes to see what it looks like to love sacrificially. Help me to slow down, notice the people around me, and move from comfort to compassion as I learn to love more like Jesus.