What's my measure?

The measure with which you measure will be measured out to you, and still more will be given to you. ~ Mark 4:24

Ave Maria!  This verse from today's gospel (Mark 4:21-25) is a sobering one.  I get as much or as little as I give.  And the choice is always mine -- I can be either a spendthrift or a tightwad in the matters of the heart.  If I love lavishly, then my entire being will continually expand more and more to welcome and receive the God who so ardently longs to give each one of us His entire being.  And still more will be given to us!  If I love meagerly -- which really isn't love at all -- then I've pretty much closed the door of my heart to my prodigal God, whose love alone is the source of my love. 

St. Francis de Sales, whose feast day we celebrated earlier this week on January 24, got it right when he proclaimed, "The measure of our love is to love without measure."  Or, as the Lutheran radio preacher and author Paul Scherer noted in his book Love is a Spendthrift: Meditations for the Christian Year, "Love is a spendthrift, leaves its arithmetic at home, is always 'in the red.'"

Today, in the Spirit of Love, I make the following prayer by author Flora Larsson the meditation and cry of my heart.

I want to be a spendthrift, Lord,
A spendthrift of my time and strength
Giving instead of withholding,
Sowing instead of wanting to reap.

Don’t let me be a miser, Master,
Cuddling myself to myself,
Careful of every effort,
Counting each step,
Hoarding my physical resources
For the demands of a tomorrow that might never come.

Make me a glad spendthrift, Lord:
Joyously giving my love and care,
Opening the sluice-gate of my small reserves,
Pouring out what little I have to give
Without measure or stint,
Without anxious debate,
And trusting You for tomorrow.

Don’t let me shelter myself in a glass case,
Fearful lest the light of day should fade me,
Dreading that the hand of time should touch me,
Shrinking from effort that might drain me,
Saving myself up for what?
To look nice in my coffin?

Let me give what I have to give with open hands,
Offering myself to You each day for service,
Happy to be used as long as life shall last,
Living for You as a glad spendthrift.
For at the end, Lord
You will not ask me what I have saved,
But what I have given.

To go forward with such a spirit is what I intend to do!