I have heard lots of definitions for “love” over the years, and my favorite is “giving with no expectancy of return.” That’s the kind of love Jesus modeled when he went to a cross 2000 years ago to pay for our sins. But I read another definition for love this week by Tim Keller that I think is a close second, “Love is the effort and desire to make someone else everything they were created to be.” What a great definition!

Who has the Lord placed in your life and my life today that we can love? How can we do or say something that will make them into everything they were created to be? The bible tells us to encourage one another daily (Heb. 3:13).

Mother Teresa once said, “I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the waters to create many ripples.” All it takes is one brief text message or one word of encouragement to a family member or co-worker. Let’s look for someone to encourage today and help him or her become everything God created them to be. Expect the ripples from this one act of love will change the world.