{"id":8554,"date":"2014-09-06T09:17:32","date_gmt":"2014-09-06T14:17:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/meganstrange.com\/?p=8554"},"modified":"2014-09-06T09:17:32","modified_gmt":"2014-09-06T14:17:32","slug":"book-review-strength-to-love","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/meganstrange.com\/?p=8554","title":{"rendered":"Book Review: Strength to Love"},"content":{"rendered":"

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“We must in strength and humility meet hate with love.”<\/em> Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in Strength to Love<\/em><\/a>, p. 50<\/p>\n

“Hatred and bitterness can never cure the disease of fear; only love can do that. \u00a0Hatred paralyzed life; love releases it. \u00a0Hatred confuses life; love harmonizes it. \u00a0Hatred darkens life; love illumines it.”\u00a0<\/em>Dr. King, p. 126<\/p>\n

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I grew up in Memphis, TN. \u00a0There are a ton of things to be proud of having grown up in Memphis…basketball, barbecue, White Station High School, and of course…Gibson’s Donuts<\/a>. \u00a0However, one of the first things that always comes to mind when you mention that you are from Memphis is the fact that Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated there in April of 1968 because he was making people uncomfortable with his agenda that tried to point people to love others just as Christ loved them. That April day in Memphis has caused my hometown to be divided in a way that is, still to this day, heartbreaking. \u00a0The bullet that ended the life of Dr. King also snuffed out the light of hope for many in Memphis that will probably not be restored until Christ himself returns<\/p>\n

This year at North Cobb Christian School<\/a>, our theme verse is Matthew 22:39 “and you shall love your neighbor as yourself.” \u00a0This is the second greatest commandment after we are told that the greatest commandment is to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, and mind (Matthew 22:37). \u00a0It’s impossible to do the second without doing the first. \u00a0In studying and reading this passage, I’m drawn to a greater appreciation for diversity in the body of Christ. \u00a0How can we truly love God without fully loving and appreciating all of the people God created? \u00a0God created all of us and those who know Christ should stand together under that banner of love in a unified message of love for others hoping to draw them to Christ by the love they see that we have for one another. \u00a0Sadly that isn’t happening in most cases. \u00a0We are wasting time and defeating the point of the gospel itself by making rules and regulations that only welcome some and force others to feel like they must stand on the outside looking in. \u00a0That isn’t at all what Christ had in mind when he “demonstrated His own love for us in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8). \u00a0When Jesus proclaimed “It is Finished” on the cross…that was for all of us.<\/p>\n

I found a copy of Strength to Love<\/a><\/em> by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. \u00a0 The book is a collection of sermons he delivered over the years and there is a chapter specifically titled “On Being a Good Neighbor”. \u00a0This book is not a quick read if you use it as a tool to assess where your heart stands on loving others. \u00a0I highlighted several things while reading and have posted them below. \u00a0I hope you will consider picking up this book and setting it next to Scripture to evaluate how committed you are to truly loving others as Christ has loved us. \u00a0I certainly have not reached that, but I’m grateful for the way that Dr. King’s message has pushed me to grow in this area.<\/p>\n