Everyone has muscle. You’re born with it. You develop it as you grow from an infant to a toddler and a toddler to a teen. But everyone has a different muscle mass. And to a large extent, the amount of muscle we have is based on the choices we make and the lifestyle we live.
I had a friend go in to the hospital for surgery last year. Her stay ended up being extended due to some complications that landed her bedridden in the ICU for a couple days. She recovered fully (praise God) and when we were later talking about her experience, one of the first things she mentioned was how her strength was significantly altered when she left the hospital. See, if we don’t use our muscles, if we lie in bed all day long – whether by choice or by circumstance – our body thinks it a waste to divert a larger than necessary amount of oxygen and nutrients to muscles we aren’t using. And so they begin to shrink , to atrophy, and we lose some of our visible muscle mass and functional strength.
The opposite, of course, happens when we exercise. When stress is placed on your muscles, they break down. And then tomorrow, they are re-built to be stronger than they were originally. And the more you stress them, the bigger and stronger they become. It’s not an irreversible process though, and so, when you take an extended break from whatever form of resistance training you may have been doing, your muscles will lose some of their acquired strength.
The efficiency of the body!
I think our capacity to love is much like the strength of a muscle.
We have choices in our love. We can choose to just love when it’s convenient. To offer a smile or a helping hand when it’s easy. But that’s a pretty superficial, self-serving kind of love. It doesn’t challenge our natural inclinations. It doesn’t cost us anything. It puts no strain on our heart. And so our ability to love doesn’t get stronger. Nope, I think that as we accustom ourselves to love in this way, we begin to teach our heart a pattern. And our ability to love sort of shrivels up.
I think the opposite happens too. There are people in this world who choose to love sacrificially on a daily basis. And it brings them great joy. They are constantly rebelling against the natural inclinations of their fallen flesh. They give up their own desires that they might fulfill the needs of another. They challenge their seemingly feeble selves, until one day they are no more the frail heart they once were. They are constantly breaking down their weak muscle, only to find it stronger the next day. And so, just as over time, we can go from lifting 10lbs to lifting 30lbs – so too, with time and use, our capacity to love is expanded.
When John Paul II was shot – he was able to go with peace and forgive the man who wanted him dead. Did he receive that grace overnight? Unlikely.
I’m more inclined to believe it was his lifetime of selfless service to his flock and the whole world that prepared him.
We won’t all be shot. But we will all find ourselves in situations where our ability to love is challenged. And I think we will only be able to respond generously if that has been the practice of our daily lives. Whether in friendships, relationships or family ties – it is our mandate to love. A la 1 Corinthians 13:4-7.
