This week at ABC Wednesday, L gets centre stage.

One of my favourite phrases, that I have hanging in my living room is based on “LIVE, LOVE, LAUGH” – something we all need to embrace.

L is for LOVE – which is illustrated so well in the words of Jesus in Matthew 22:36-40 (NIV):

³⁶ “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”

³⁷ Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’^[a] 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. ³⁹ And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’^[b] 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

We desperately need more love in this divisive world, especially love for our fellow man.

Bertrand Russell reflected on this:

Christ said “Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself” and when asked “who is thy neighbour? went on to the parable of the Good Samaritan. If you wish to understand this parable as it was understood by his hearers, you should substitute “Germans and Japanese” for Samaritan. I fear my modern day Christians would resent such a substitution, because it would compel them to realize how far they have departed from the teachings of the founder of their religion.

We are each other’s neighbours – regardless of our skin colour, our religion, our sexual orientation. We need to accept and love each other – what a lovely world we could have if only we could do this.

&nbspp;